


Lost Uzumaki

by Silver Dragonfly (lillikira)



Category: Naruto, One Piece
Genre: Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-06
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2018-02-12 01:09:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 57
Words: 114,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2090055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lillikira/pseuds/Silver%20Dragonfly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shanks was used to strange meetings on the various islands of the Grand Line. However, this one was unusual even for the Grand Line. A Lost Uzumaki is found and Naruto has no plans of not becoming part of his family. (A Series of Snapshots about the finding of lost family.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Different Kind of Messenger

**Author's Note:**

> One Piece and all its characters © Eiichiro Oda
> 
> Naruto and all its characters © Masashi Kishimoto

**A Different Kind of Messenger**

_By Silver Dragonfly_

* * *

 

Shanks blinked.   The square-pupil eyes blinked back at him.

He blinked again. The orange frog-like creature continued to stare at him, blinking a moment later.

“Hey, Benn!” Shanks called out from where he lay on his side, his head propped up on his hand, a bottle of rum resting beside him. In the distance the sounds of the rest of the crew getting into the full swing of an impromptu party on their current resident island could be heard.

“Yes, Captain?” the voice of his first mate answered back from across the small clearing.

“Am I drunk?”

“You are always drunk, Captain.” his first mate responded dryly.

Shanks frowned and continued to stare at the frog. It really was a strange frog, big for one. Its’ head would come up past his knees at least if he was standing.

“Am I awake?” he asked his first mate.

“You had better be. I do not wish to be who you dream about.” Benn replied, half his reply muttered lowly.

“Why is this frog thing staring at me, then?” Shanks mused.

“You are the one they call Red-haired Shanks?” a voice suddenly spoke.

“Hey, Benn?”

“Yes, Captain?” his first mate answered once more with years of practiced tolerance.

“We ever met a talking frog before?” Shanks asked.

“I am a messenger toad from the toad clan of Mount Myouboku, not a frog!” the voice responded.

“Oh, a messenger toad!” Shanks exclaimed his eyes lighting up as he shifted to a sitting position, “Never heard of them.”

His first mate walked up behind him, a cigarette perched between his lips, rifle in hand. “Messenger toad?”

The toad glared at them. He’d had no respect ever since he’d crossed over into this realm. It was as if no one in this world had ever seen a member of the summoning clans before. “If you could swipe a bit of blood on this mark here please, I will verify your identity.”

Shanks studied the scroll-like object the toad offered forward, and the ink-like markings surrounding the white band around its middle. He shrugged, then nicked his thumb on one of the various sharp surfaces and dabbed it on the inked marking. His brows arched as his blood was absorbed by the paper and the ink marks began to glow.

“Identity verified. Uzumaki Shanks found and message scroll delivered.” the toad stated, relief in his tone.

The scroll continued to glow and a poof of smoke filled the space above. “Yosh! You found him then, Gamatsukai!” A cheerful voice called out of the smoke.

Shanks blinked in surprise. “Oi Benn, you sure I’m not drunk?”

“You are drunk, Captain, but no you are not imagining this.” Benn replied a small frown on his lips.

A young blonde man appeared from the fading smoke, a huge grin on his face. Almost immediately Shanks was reminded of the boy he’d left back in East Blue, but then focused on the new arrival. Benneath blonde hair, bright blue eyes stared out and two sets of whisker-like scars framed the nose and mouth.

“Pleasure to meet you!” The young man greeted, “Boss sent me to get the first meeting taken care of and set up a method of travel for him to come himself.”

Benn frowned.

Shanks lips twitched into a lazy smirk, was this some new rookie’s trick? “And just who is this Boss?” He asked.

“Uzumaki Naruto! You are Uzumaki Shanks, right?” Without waiting for an answer the blonde turned back to the toad, “Oi, Tsukai, you did get the blood sample right?”

Benn didn’t like the sound of that. He moved forward, the business end of his rifle at the blonde man’s temple in an instant. “Explain yourself, kid.”

“Watch where you are pointing that thing old man!” the blonde kid responded frowning and lifting a hand to push the weapon away from his head.

“Let the kid sit down and have a drink, Benn. I’m curious to hear what he has to say.” Shanks offered with a lazy wave of his hand.

The blonde boy grinned and moved forward to sit next to the redhead his face all a grin, and then his nose twitched. “Oi… you look like you could give Ero-sennin and Ba-chan a run for their money with all that.” He stated as he observed all the empty bottles.

Shanks laughed. “So what makes you think my name is Uzumaki Shanks, kid?”

The blonde blinked at him in confusion. “It’s not?”

“Don’t tell me you have never heard of the Red-haired pirates?” Shanks scoffed.

The blonde boy’s eye sparkled, “You’re a pirate! That’s so cool!”

Shanks blinked and the guffawed. “You really do remind me of Luffy.”

The blonde blinked confused. “Who’s Luffy?”

Shanks waved a hand dismissively. “Another time, you haven’t answered my question yet, kid.”

“Your blood was absorbed by the scroll on the seal that Gamatsukai brought, right?” he asked.

Shanks shrugged and nodded.

“That seal was a blood seal. It would not have activated if your blood had not met necessary requirements, specifically a blood relation to the seal creator.”

“So you’re telling me because my blood was absorbed that makes me an Uzumaki?”

“That and the red hair,” The toad mumbled.

“Yeah. It’s the same color as Mom’s.” The blonde boy chimed in.

“Same color as Mom’s…” Shanks replied not sure he liked where this was going. “How old is your boss, kid?”

“We have a name you know.” The kid responded irritably and frowned.

"We?" Benn asked, as he leaned up against a tree just behind Shanks where he could keep an eye on the blonde.

“Yeah. Boss and me.” The kid answered.

“You share the same name with your boss?”

At this the blonde looked puzzled, “You’ve never seen a Bunshin before? I mean I know the Kage Bunshin are kind of rare… but still!”

“Bunshin? You’re a clone?”

“Yeah! But a solid one!”

“So the boss you have been talking about?”

“Is the original me.”

“And your name then would be?”

“Uzumaki Naruto!”

At that moment there was a shout and holler from somewhere just outside of the clearing and an empty bottle came flying through the clearing to collide with the blonde boy’s face.  Everyone blinked and then there was a poof of smoke and the clone vanished.

“Why’d you have to go and do that!” The Toad moaned. “Naruto’s going to make me bring back another one now, I just know it.”

Shanks blinked at the empty space where the blonde boy had sat and then turned to the toad. Before he could ask any further questions, the toad also vanished in a poof of a smoke.

Shanks frowned. “Think there was some bad stuff in this batch, Benn.” He commented looking down at his bottle before lifting it to his lips to take a drink.

Benn snorted but made no further comment.

 

* * *

 

I have been toying around with the idea of Shanks being a “Lost Uzumaki” for some time now, which in turn led to this little short story.  I have spent some time working out the facts behind the concept of Shanks being Kushina’s younger brother (and that it would be feasible and even likely for Naruto and Luffy to be the same age). 

Thanks again!

 


	2. Forgotten Childhood

**Forgotten Childhood**

_By Silver Dragonfly_  


 

* * *

"Benn…" Shanks began, a far-off look in his eyes, as he stared out at the sea, "Have I ever told you about the time before I was recruited by Roger?" he asked his first mate.

Benn was about to reply that of course he had, but then the tone of his Captain's voice made him pause. The normal boisterous and amused at life tone was not present for his usual story-telling mood. "No Captain, I don’t believe you have."

Shanks gave an odd little smirk, one both natural and unusual on his face. "My oldest memories… or youngest depending on how you look at it, are of a large family… and lots of red hair. None of them are really clear… just vague impressions and bits of emotion, really.”

Benn found himself smiling at the tidbit of information. It gave a bit more meaning to their crew’s name after all. It wasn’t just after their Captain’s own vibrant shade, but of the Captain’s entire family. By calling his crew as such, Shanks had, in his own manner linked them to a family he had once had. His musings were interrupted however as the man in question continued to speak.

“I don't know what happened, and I had nearly given up hope of ever learning the real truth of it … but I remember there was a night of fire. Everything was burning and so much fear filled the air.” He paused, his expression both contemplative and tense, “… and a promise to not give up. I’ve always suspected it may have been the result of a Buster Call, but no idea why, or where."

He stopped speaking then, lifting the bottle his fingers cradled to his lips.

Benn remained silent not willing to interrupt whatever it was his Captain felt the need to say. The nights that his Captain let such moods overtake him were rare, but not once had it been about something that proved frivolous and unimportant. He leaned back against the railing of the ship and calmly lit a cigarette, waiting to see if his Captain would continue or if that would be the end of it tonight.

The ocean waves lapped against the wood of the ship’s hull, an ever-present song of the sea and as familiar as a heartbeat to those that lived upon the surface of her depths.

"The story isn't even that special or unique. There are hundreds of kids out there with tales similar enough: families torn apart by the greed of pirates or the justice of the marines. I was just another no name orphan lost in the crowds, back alleys, and shadows."

Benn made no comment but to take another pull from his smoke. It was true.  Childhoods of growing up on the streets were very common in the world. It was perhaps not the most common story among those who claimed the title pirate, since the sea called those from all walks of life, but it was common enough to not be surprising in the least.

A wry chuckle escaped the red haired man’s lips. "I had a knack for pissing people off you know. Loud mouthed, always getting into fights. I was a regular terror. Luffy really reminded me of myself back then, you know? Always managed to get caught up in the thick of things without a second thought; you'd have almost expected me to carry the initial D when I was that age, but I didn’t.” He paused here again.

Taking another drink, he began slowly rotating the bottle in his hand causing the remaining liquid to swirl around inside it. “Uzumaki… that name rings true. I didn’t even remember it until that weird toad said it." The red-haired man took another drink, an abrasive laugh slipping from his lips afterward. "How crazy is that, reminded of your own family name by an overgrown toad?"

Benn raised an eyebrow, actually surprised by this revelation.

"Uzumaki… uzumaki… that island that I can barely remember… it was surrounded by whirlpools.” Shanks mused almost seeming to forget Benn was there as his gaze drifted from the bottle in his hand to the ocean below.

“Roger asked me if I had a dream once… I told him I wanted to find that island if it still existed. The island surrounded by whirlpools. Captain laughed and told me we would search for it together."

"Captain…" Benn said almost silently, honestly surprised, which was saying something. He had sailed with this man for twenty years and his antics rarely surprised him anymore. This however, this was new and yet so very old.

"In all my years of sailing, there has not even been a rumor of such a place. Not with Roger then, and not since I started my own crew the day I found you." Shanks then glanced at Benn and laughed loudly. The serious air suddenly banished.

"The look on your face!" Shanks guffawed nearly falling off his feet.

 Benn sighed and rolled his eyes. This behavior didn't surprise him.

Shanks turned his back to the railing and slid down to sit on the deck his eyes turning skyward to the stars above. "I have no regrets. Sailing with Roger I gained another dream. To sail the seas and always be free, and I plan to continue on with that dream till the day I die."

He went silent then for a while. He set the bottle he had been nursing down on the deck beside him. His hand reached into the folds of his cloak and pulled out the only proof they had from the strange encounter with the so-called messenger toad. The red-haired pirate’s fingers traced over the ink markings still covering the thick fabric-like paper that surrounded the scroll. He had not yet tried to unbind and open the scroll, but instead just studied the markings that covered it.

"Say Benn…"

"Captain."  The stoic once raven-haired man answered.

"I think I would like to meet that blonde kid again sometime."

"Of Course, Captain." Benn replied, only surprised it had taken the man this long to say it.

 

 


	3. Interrogation of a Toad

**Interrogation of a Toad**

 

By Silver Dragonfly

 

* * *

 

 

Blue eyes followed the path of the brush as it left a smooth line of ink in its wake; the hand guiding the brush steady and sure in its movements. The owner of both eyes and hand remained focused as he fed the necessary amounts of chakra through hand, brush, and into the ink as it was laid on the paper. Too much and it would blow up in his face, literally. Too little and all his work would be wasted.

 

The art of fujinjutsu in many ways was as delicate as the surgeries med-nin often performed, particularly when it came to sealing works that were used by med-nin. Naruto often surprised himself with the skill he seemed to have for fujinjutsu, considering his complete lack when it came to medical ninjutsu (and he had tried to learn at least some medical jutsu until both Sakura and Tsunade told him it was hopeless). So he had turned his focus toward fujinjutsu, a skill that was his by heritage four times over. Both his parents had been known for their sealing abilities, as well as two of his sensei. Regardless of this, the ease he seemed to pick up the art of it still amazed him (despite quite a few explosions in his face and more than one replaced kitchen table).

 

He smiled as he came to the final stroke on his current project before the familiar feeling of memory and returning chakara from a Kage Bunshin washed through him. Naruto’s eyes widened as the seal glowed blue, then white, and then exploded. Ignoring the now scorched tabletop, Naruto’s wide blue eyes became hazy as his mind focused on the new memories.

 

“He found him!” He cheered forgetting completely about the now destroyed seal and damaged table surface. He moved quickly to more open living room space with his fingers flying through the necessary hand signs and quick drop of blood required to activate the summoning.

 

There was a soft woosh of displaced air as the large orange toad appeared. The toad blinked and scanned his surroundings, recognizing it for Uzumaki Naruto’s apartment in Konoha.

 

“I’m glad you’re okay Gamatsukai. Sorry my clone didn’t treat you better after so long. I had Gamakichi check the roster for your name regularly to make sure you were okay.”

 

The toad blinked and studied the blonde man standing before him. He was his father’s son without a doubt, and it showed even more now than when he had last seen the newest toad-sage. He could see the boy’s mother there though as well, and the boy had really gained some height since the last time Gamatsukai had seen him in person. There was something in his gaze though, and Gamatsukai knew then that the last two years had not been easy for either of them.

 

“It’s only to be expected Naruto-san. Kage Bunshin have not been used in such a fashion before. I was just pleased it worked at all after how long it took to find the man.”

 

“Yeah, I was pretty surprised when I got the clone’s memories so suddenly. Idiot should have dodged that bottle.” The blonde teen shook his head exasperated at the clone’s behavior. “Do you need to head back to Mount Myouboku right away, or can I get your full report first?” the blonde then asked.

 

Gamatsukai blinked in surprise, the boy had grown indeed. Then he grinned. “Your Uncle is a hard man to track down, though his name in that realm is very well known.”

 

Naruto’s eyes sparkled at the information, “Tell me everything!”

 

“Of course, though it will be a somewhat long tale.” The toad answered and settled himself more comfortably and watched as the blonde moved into the kitchen space and dug through a cupboard.

 

“Here you go. Shima-Baa-chan gave these to me during my last visit to Mount Myouboku.” Naruto stated as he offered the toad some jerky-like strips.

 

“Shima-sama’s famous bug jerky. That is a treat, thank you.” Gamatsukai replied taking a few moments to eat as the blonde settled himself across from him on a cushion. He then began his tale. “I followed the tracking guide you created with Kakashi-san’s help to the island region where Uzushiogakure used to stand. That was when things got tricky. The whirlpools that fill the ocean of that region have shifted over the years and I had to make a lot of detours to get around them. Then the tracking seal led to the heart of one whirlpool in particular. I contacted the sea frogs of the area, our cousins, to find out what they knew. I learned that particular whirlpool surrounds a portal.”

 

“A portal?”

 

“That’s right, from what Kaerumaki told me, it seems to function much like the portals we use to travel from Mount Myouboku do, with one exception. Nothing that goes through has ever come back out. The sea frogs seem to think this is largely due to the portal being at the heart of the whirlpool, creating too much of a downward current for anything to come back up through it. Yet that is where the tracking seal was leading, so with the sea frogs’ help I went through. They will be pleased to learn of the success of my trip. I am also relieved, however, that you were able to summon me back home.”

 

“Where did it take you?” The teen asked, his expression focused on the story and yet his entire body seemed tense.

 

“They do not have a name for the realm like we call this one the Elemental Nations, but it was not the same world, of that I am certain.”

 

Naruto grinned, “You have had quite the adventure. Gamakichi is going to be jealous.”

 

At that statement, Gamatsukai frowned. “I would not advise him or any of my larger kin travel to that world as I did. It is a world dominated by the sea and there are many large creatures that live in it. Gamakichi and others of that size and larger would stand out far too easily and attract far too much attention. The people of that world are accustomed to dealing with large aggressive creatures and will not likely wait to determine if they are hostile or not. Also, there is very little in the way of large land masses and the people almost all live on islands or live constantly sailing upon the seas. There is one large continental mass that is very unique in that it surrounds the world in a great circle bisecting the ocean on a north to south axis. They call it the Red Line.”

 

“Is it red?” Naruto asked curious.

 

Gamatsukai laughed. “Not that I saw, though I did not visit it much. The oceans are also separated into five seas, four of which are normal as far as oceans go and are named North Blue, South Blue, East Blue, and West Blue. The Blues in turn are then bisected by the fifth ocean known as the Grand Line. The Grand Line, like the Red Line, surrounds the world in a great circle, bisecting the Blues into the four quadrants where the Red Line does not. This ocean however is wild in every sense of the word. Those who live and sail the Grand Line are always tempting danger and fate. Weather, navigation, and the creatures that live in the ocean itself, all are completely different from the Blues. It is the wildest section of the Grand Line that your Uncle sails.”

 

“So he really is a pirate, ship and all?” Naruto asked, the grin not leaving his face for a moment.

 

“He is. That world is in what they call _The Great Pirate Age_ , and from what I learned, the term pirate really refers to anyone who sails the seas and refuses the rule of the World Government. Not all that do so are criminals. Your Uncle seems to be one of these, though he is not innocent.”

 

At that last comment Naruto scoffed. “You say that as if anyone living as a shinobi can claim to be different. I’ve lived through a Great Shinobi War, after that, nothing is simply good or evil.”

 

The toad’s expression softened, he had missed much indeed. “Will you send another scroll?” he asked.

 

Naruto blinked in surprise, “I want to! But… Gamatsukai it took you nearly two years…”

 

“It will not take so long a second time.” He said with a bit of a smirk. “I know who I am looking for now, and I learned a few tricks for traveling in that world. It will still take some time, but I can find him again.” the toad explained.

 

Naruto smiled. “I have a few things I need to finish mastering before I send another Kage scroll. We’ll want to be able to make it easier to send them in the future as well. Still can’t believe the stupid clone let himself get dispelled so easily. Thanks, Gamatsukai. I think Mom would have wanted to find her little brother if she was alive, and I want a chance to get to know him now that he has been found.”

 

The two sat in silence for several moments before Naruto spoke again. “And his hair! Is his pirate crew really named the Red-haired Pirates?”

 

The toad chuckled. “Oh it is, and they are known throughout that world as some of the best.”

 

Naruto grinned. “I can’t wait.”


	4. Second Meetings

** Second Meetings **

_By Silver Dragonfly_   
  


* * *

  
Dracule Mihawk blinked and then narrowed his gaze as he considered what sat in front of him. He glanced around the clearing, noting the various sprawled bodies that hadn’t moved in some time. To his immediate right was a mess of vibrant red hair that faint snores drifted out from. He glanced skyward and noted that it was still early in the morning. He then glanced at the various bottles and mugs and frowned. He would have to be more careful about letting the Red-Haired pirate drag him into his parties in the future. Though it had been something of a special occasion he supposed.

Telling the redhead in teasing bits and pieces about his run-in with the boy wearing a certain straw-hat and his first mate back in East Blue had been entertaining. Shanks had shoved a drink in his hand after every detail, laughing boisterously with each tidbit. Well, nearly every tidbit. Shanks had looked very dark for a few moments when he had told him about cutting down the swordsman until he had revealed that he had not actually killed the boy. Really, if Shanks was going to be a mother-hen about that crew he would do best to avoid them in the future.

None of that really mattered now, however, as his amber gaze traveled back to an equally amber gaze staring at him from the clearing edge. The creature did not seem hostile, but it was definitely not native. He wondered if it came from some island of sentient amphibians, dressed as it was and with a large scroll bound on its back. Deciding it was really none of his business; he adjusted his hat and pulled himself to his feet. The large creature glanced at him but its focus remained on the still comatose pirate.  Mihawk then kicked an empty bottle to roll up against the mop of red hair.

There was a snort, groan, and then a muttered curse asking if he wanted to die.

“I am leaving and there is a large amphibian staring at you.” Mihawk stated dryly.

There was an unintelligible grunt in reply. Mihawk stared at the unmoving redhead, then turned and vacated the clearing. It wasn’t his problem.

It was several minutes later that the redhead suddenly sat up straight, eyes wide. “Ehhhhh!”

The said amphibian chuckled in amusement. “You don’t handle the after-party well, do you?”

Shanks blinked several times and then groaned but a smirk crossed his lips as he settled back into a more comfortable position. “So he sent you back after all. I had wondered if you would really be able to find us again.”

The toad smirked, “You are one of the more challenging individuals to track down, but not impossible. It was actually much easier this time.”

Shanks chuckled lowly then groaned as the morning sun filtered into the clearing. It was at moments like this that he really missed the hat. “Oi Benn, you awake?” He then called out.

There was a shift of movement as the man in question looked up towards his captain. “Do you have to ask?”

Shanks grinned. “I think we’ll set sail with this afternoon’s tide.  We’ll have to restock our supplies sooner than anticipated.” which meant that their back-to-back parties had drained the alcohol supply much faster than the captain was now comfortable with.

Benn Beckman only chuckled and then rose to his feet, nudging several unmoving bodies around him in the process. There was a chorus of moans and groans as the crew was prodded into activity and before long there was no one left in the clearing save for the Red-haired Captain and the toad.

“Gamatsukai was it?” Shanks then asked as he began nursing the mug of coffee one of his crew had provided him before heading off to other duties.

“That’s correct. It is kind of you to remember when we were not properly introduced.” The toad replied.

Shanks smiled, “I have a question for you before you start pulling out those scrolls of yours.”

The toad was not really surprised by this turn of events, “I shall answer if I can.”

Shanks face then took a very serious tone and a shadow seemed to pass across his eyes. “That island surrounded by whirlpools, does it exist?”

Whatever questions the toad had been expecting from the eccentric red-haired man, this had not been one of them. However it was a simple and easy question to answer. “The island of Uzu does in fact exist, though none now call it home.”

The serious air suddenly dissipated from around the red-haired man and he seemed to cheer up considerably. “It does exist. That is good to hear.” Shanks replied though it was obvious his mind had drifted.

Gamatsukai did not reply but instead watched the redheaded pirate captain. It seemed the redhead remembered something of his ancestry after all.  


Gamatsukai found himself being a silent observer as the Red-Haired pirates set about their tasks and preparing the ship to sail. He watched as Shanks strolled among his men as they worked, offering comments here and there but as a whole letting the crew do their work without interference. He was a little surprised that the Red-haired man had not left his men to work and asked for the scroll he had known Gamatsukai carried for him.  In fact it wasn’t until later that evening that Gamatsukai, now a welcomed guest aboard the Red Force, found himself sitting at a low table with the Captain once more.

“Well then Gamatsukai-san, shall we see what’s in this scroll of yours?” Shanks asked with an easy smile. However, no sooner had the toad laid it on the table before them then another man’s hand covered it and kept Shanks from picking it up.

“A few questions first if you please. My Captain is a bit absent-minded after all.” Benn Beckman, the Red-haired’s first mate interrupted.

Gamatsukai chuckled. “It is good to see Shanks-san has such people with him. It has often taken several more level heads to try and keep Naruto out of mischief as well, with limited success.” Shanks broke into loud laughter at this and Benn arched an eyebrow and then grimaced at the thought of a second younger Shanks.

“If you could, Gamatsukai-san, explain more about this Kage Bunshin and why it was that both it and you disappeared so suddenly during our last meeting.” Benn then asked.

“Good questions, as we would like to avoid a sudden repeat of that event.” Gamatsukai replied. “From what I understand so far of this world, no one uses chakara so I will begin with that.”

Shanks sat up suddenly at the word. “That word!”

The toad smiled, “I had hoped you might recognize it. Chakra, in the world we call the Elemental Nations, is the combination of spiritual and physical energy which is then used in various ways. The ways it is used vary from enhancing physical ability, the senses, healing techniques, illusionary techniques, and lastly ninja techniques. The Kage Bunshin and the cause for my own disappearance both fall into this last grouping. In contrast there is no such thing as Devil Fruits in our world, or what I believe you call Haki, though a shinobi’s killing intent may be like it on some level as it is a force of will.”

Benn frowned at that final statement. “How common is this killing intent?”

“All shinobi have it to at least some degree,” Gamatsukai answered easily. “However, it is not likely to affect an experienced fighter unless you are facing someone of particular strength.  Even among the most skilled shinobi, there are few who can truly affect people by their presence alone.”

“Now, as for the Kage Bunshin” Gamatsukai continued, “As Naruto explained briefly, it is a solid copy of himself. The ability is unique in that unlike its much more common variation, the Bunshin, the Kage Bunshin splits the user’s chakara evenly between it and the created clone creating a solid copy instead of just an illusionary one. The Kage Bunshin can then carry out tasks just as the original would, with the only weakness being that it only takes one solid hit to dispel the clone. Once dispelled, any unused chakra and memories the clone has gained return to the original. I can tell you, Naruto was not impressed with his clone’s failure at dodging that bottle that dispelled it.”

Shanks laughed loudly and even Benn found himself smirking. Being mad at a copy of oneself for being hit in the head with a stray bottle was rather silly.

“You are not one of these Kage Bunshin, and yet you vanished in a similar manner?” Benn then asked once his captain had settled down once more.

“That is correct.” Gamatsukai responded. “The toad clan of Mount Myouboku is one of many that have developed a contract with individual Shinobi. This contract grants the shinobi the privilege to call on members of our clan to fight with them in their battles. Naruto is currently the only individual that has such a contract with the toad clan. When he received the clone’s memories, he summoned me, which caused me to vanish from this world as you put it. There is of course a lot more to it on a more detailed level, but that is the basics.”

The two men glanced at each other but seemed to come to some silent agreement before Benn spoke once more. “One more question, why seek Shanks out now?”

Gamatsukai sighed. This was the question he hadn’t wanted to be asked. “That would be best answered by Naruto.”

Been nodded, as if he had suspected as much and then slid the still waiting scroll over to Shanks.  The Red-haired Captain picked it up and then studied it, noticing several differences in the marks on this one from the previous.

“One other thing I should probably mention…” Gamatsukai began as Shanks studied the scroll. “The previous Kage Bunshin was in storage for nearly two years; this one is much more current. Naruto is seventeen; the previous clone was of his fifteen-year-old self.”

Shanks simply shrugged and then nicked his finger on a knife hidden under his cloak and then swiped the blood that welled across the ink markings. Just as before the blood seemed to be absorbed and the markings began to grow blue. There was a poof of smoke and then a muttered curse and impact of flesh on flesh.  In an instant Benn was on his feet his eyes staring intently at the place Shanks had been sitting waiting for the wisps of displaced and hazy air to fade.

“Ah sorry about that, Gamatsukai should have had you set the scroll down. Nice to meet you again!” a cheerful voice greeted and moments later the haze faded showing a blonde-haired young man in the progress of disentangling himself from Shanks who had been knocked on his back by the sudden weight.

Shanks suddenly laughed. “You have grown kid! Gamatsukai said you were a couple years older, seems you finally hit your growth spurt?”

The blonde chuckled with him, “Yeah, you could say that.” The blonde then looked around until he spotted the familiar form of Gamatsukai. “Gamatsukai, how long this time?”

The toad grinned. “Three months, Naruto-san. I did tell you it wouldn’t take nearly as long this time.”

“Good job, Tsukai. “ The blonde replied. “So this is your ship?” He asked in curiosity as his blue eyes scanned their surroundings his eyes widening as he spotted the endless blue ocean surrounding them. “Wow, I’ve never seen so much water…”

Shanks grinned widely, “Welcome to the Red Force, kid. You can’t tell me the sea is not so large back home?”

Naruto turned to face Shanks once more and chuckled while scratching the back of his head. “It is, I just haven’t seen much of it myself. The few times I’ve been on ships they remained in sight of the coast more or less.”

Shanks accepted the answer. “So tell us, Naruto, right? Just why did you decide to seek me out? After all, it’s been over twenty years since I’ve heard anyone use the name Uzumaki.”

Naruto sat down at the low table; his eyes still alight with excitement, but settling into the more serious discussion. “Family is important. Blood or adopted doesn’t matter. When I found the lineage scroll in Mom’s things and it showed that her younger brother could still be living, I had to at least try to find you. Wasn’t expecting you to be in a whole other world though! That is probably why Mom never found you herself.”

Shanks blinked. Then blinked again his mouth dropping open slightly as he tried to comprehend just what it was the boy was saying. “Mom’s younger brother…” he finally whispered his eyes wide.

Benn looked from the blonde to the red-haired man and back again as he sat down once more slowly. He could see similarities… but to imagine Shanks having an older sister…

Shanks frowned as he considered the revelation and the chords it struck within him. A flash of red hair and a teasing tone.  Kushina-neesan. She had been crying when she left that day. No one had been able to explain why. He had wanted to go with her.

“You would have been pretty young when she moved to Konoha from what I’ve been told.” Naruto said softly. “So… I can call you Shanks-oji, right?” he then chimed in with another grin.

Shanks blinked and looked dumbfounded at the boy.

Benn began chuckling as he pulled out a cigarette. “So, does this mean we can expect a visit from Shanks big sister in the future, then?”

At this Naruto slumped and didn’t answer immediately, the light hearted tone of their conversation immediately fading.

Shanks sighed then asked gently. “How long has she been gone?”

“She and Dad both died the day I was born. I never got to know them.” Naruto answered softly.

Nothing more was said for several minutes and then Shanks leaned back and looked skyward. He would never see Kushina again. In some ways this sudden recollection of long last family was incredibly cruel. To have such hope dangled and then pulled away again. But then he looked at the blonde-haired youth sitting before him again. The kid had seen hell. He hid it well, but Shanks could see it there: In the quiet tension in shoulders and back, the way he was almost too excited. “I’m sorry.” He said softly, studying the blonde who sat slumped looking downward. “You had living family…”

Naruto looked up surprised. “It’s not your fault! They died protecting me and the village… besides I wasn’t completely alone. The old man Hokage looked after me when he could and well… while no kid wishes to grow up alone, I wouldn’t have met all the people I care for if I hadn’t grown up as I did.”

Shanks nodded, accepting the response; glad the kid didn’t hold it against him. Even if there was no way he could have known about him.  Still, seemed the kid had grown up pretty well despite the fact it was obvious he had seen a lot of hardship.

Gamatsukai decided it was time for a subject change. “Naruto-san, do not forget to ask about the seal array.”

“Right! Shanks-oji, I need a secure space to set up a permanent seal marker. Then I can send scrolls without making Gamatsukai travel all over looking for you again. That and I hope to visit in person someday when I get a certain skill mastered.” Naruto had all but bounced as he spoke, but then he froze in place, “That is… if you will let me?”

Shanks glanced at his first mate and then chuckled at the stunned look on his First Mate’s face then spoke. “Of course I would like to have you visit, kid. Besides, my crew needs someone new to help keep them on their toes! Just look at old Benn here all stiff and in shock.”

Benn ignored the Red-haired man and simply continued to smoke his cigarette, flicking the ashes at his captain. “Captain, of course, refers to the extra work he expects me to do while he slacks off.”

 “See what I mean?” The Redhead whined.

Naruto glanced between the two and found himself grinning at their behavior. It reminded him of home.

“So how about we get the kid introduced to the crew, Benn, since he’s going to be a regular visitor and all?”

“Since Captain has neglected such pleasantries,” The older man ignored his Captain’s indignant squawk, “It is good to meet you Uzumaki Naruto. I am Benn Beckman, First Mate of the Red-Haired pirates. Your dear old Oji, is of course our Captain and one of the Yonko here on the sea we know as the New World. Has your friend Gamatsukai explained the seas here to you?” Benn then asked.

Naruto couldn’t help but feel his grin spread. “He has, it’s a pretty crazy place I hear.”

Shanks laughed at that.  “Stick around, kid, and I’m sure you’ll see soon enough.”

Naruto’s grin softened into a smile. “I hope to.”  



	5. Why a Pirate?

**Why a pirate?**

_By Silver Dragonfly_   
  


* * *

 

“So, kiddo, what do you think of the Red Force?” Shanks asked as he approached the blonde-haired teen sitting at the ship’s railing with his feet dangling over the edge of the ship.

“It’s awesome Shanks-oji! I’ve never seen a ship like it.” The youth replied turning to face him with a huge grin.

“Ah, she is one of a kind and she has seen us through quite a few adventures.” Shanks replied as he settled down to sit next to his blonde nephew.

“And what do you think of the crew?”

The blonde laughed at this, “They are a crazy bunch that’s for sure, but…”

“But?” Shanks inquired raising an eyebrow.

Naruto’s smile softened, “They would go through hell for you if you asked it of them. I can tell.”

Shanks found himself surprised by the statement, then chuckled. “Well to be fair, I’ve dragged them through a few places that might just be considered hell. Loyalty to your crewmates is important living on the sea, particularly this sea. There is no room for second guessing and doubts.” He trailed off for a few moments. “Besides, the crew also knows I would bring hell with me to anyone who dared to hurt a friend of mine.”

Naruto grinned an interesting twinkle in his blue gaze. “A long time ago, someone special once told me that true strength comes from protecting what is precious to you. I will never not fight to protect those precious to me. That’s a promise! And I never go back on my word! That is my nindo.”

Shanks met his grin with one of his own and then patted his nephew on the back. “A good rule to live by.”

Naruto turned back to study the sea around them and was quiet for several moments before speaking again. “Hey Shanks-oji, why become a pirate?”

Shanks considered the question for several minutes, “Are you asking in general why people choose to become pirates or why I personally did?” he asked, curious as to what exactly was on his nephew’s mind.

The blonde hummed in thought for a moment before speaking. “Both I guess.”

Shanks nodded. “Well, for some, it is because they are really no better than bandits that live on the sea rather than land. They prey on those weaker than them and live for their own pleasures. However, very few such pirate crews make it to the Grand Line. They don’t have the ambition for it.”

Naruto wrinkled his nose. “I’ve never understood why people choose to live like that.”

 “I agree. There are some however, that are forced into it by matter of circumstance. If the World Government declares you its enemy, piracy and the open sea is the only freedom that can be found. There are many such stories amongst pirates that have these origins.”

“You mean that if they didn’t chose piracy they’d either be in dead or in prison.” Naruto stated frowning.

“Or worse.” Shanks stated with a serious tone, “The Celestial Dragons endorse slavery and I do not know of any fate worse for those whose greatest desire is the freedom of the sea.”

“Slavery? How? I mean… even the worst of Elemental nations did not have outright slavery.”

“It is a symptom of the corruption of the World Government and it is that corruption that has in turn led to Great age of Pirates. Those that take up the pirate flag are all in their own way revolting against the World Government, whether that is their true intention or not. “

“World Government … do they really control this entire world?” Naruto asked.

Shanks chuckled. “They like to think they do. Some areas are more under their control than others. This sea, the one called the New World, is the largest region mostly free of their rule. The New World is really under pirate control, though the officials would like to deny that fact. Four Pirate Emperors, or Yonko, currently control the balance of power in the New World.”

Naruto chuckled at that. “Kind of sounds like the Five major Shinobi villages keeping balance before the Fourth War in the Elemental Nations.”

Shanks shrugged, not having had the chance to learn much of the Elemental Nations from the blonde as of yet. “Back to your original question though. For most who do not fall into either of the other groups it is the sea itself and the promise of adventure and the achievement of dreams that lead them to take up the title of pirate.  These types also usually don’t quite get along with the World Government. My late Captain was one of these.”

“Is that why you became a pirate?” Naruto asked excitedly.

Shanks laughed at his enthusiasm. “You could say that. Captain Roger found me living off the streets on the island I first washed up on. I was getting into all sorts of trouble back then, but more than anything, I wanted to prove that the island I remembered existed. Captain Roger gave me the chance to set sail to find it. Can you figure out what island I was looking for?”

Naruto frowned but then considered. “You were looking for home? For Uzu?”

Shanks nodded. “I found my home here on the sea in my search, but I had always hoped I might still find it. I know now why I never did thanks to you.”

Naruto grinned, and then turned to face Shanks, fully pulling his legs up and tucking them up on the deck cross-legged in front of him as he leaned forward.

“Would you still like to see it Shanks-oji!? I’ve never gone there, but if I can get you into the Elemental Nations we could go together.”

Shanks stared in shock. “Could that even be possible…” he whispered. From all that he had heard so far from both the toad Gamatsukai and his nephew’s clones the journey was one way. The use of summoning jutsu was the only reason why the toad had been able to return home at all. There would be no reliable way to summon Shanks back to this world if it was managed. He had no desire to risk a trip through the whirlpool and portal again as the messenger toad had.

Naruto grinned. “Boss has been working hard on perfecting a jutsu that should allow him to cross between the worlds as long as the proper anchors exist in both places. Once he’s got it mastered, he should be able to take you back and forth with him.”

Shanks shook his head in amusement. There was something about the next generation and making the impossible seem possible. First Luffy and now his own nephew dreaming and making the impossible happen. “I will not abandon my crew; this is now my home after all. Finding the freedom of the sea is a dream on its own, but I would like to visit that place if I could be sure of coming back.” Shanks finally answered after a few moments, a small smile on his lips.

Naruto nodded with enthusiasm. “Of course, Boss has a ways to go before he’s ready to try a jump across yet himself.  He can always have the toads summon him back if he has to as well.”

“The toads can summon the real you?” Shanks asked surprised.

“Yeah, though they don’t do it very often, and only Shima-Baa-chan and Fukusaku-jiji can do it. It’s usually just for training at their home mountain, or if the elder toad needs to see us. Shima-Baa-chan always tries to feed us her home cooking when we visit, bugs… yuck, so we try to keep such visits short.” 

Shanks couldn’t help but laugh at his statement and the ridiculousness of it.

“So you became a pirate to find a way home?” Naruto then asked, bringing their conversation back around again.

Shanks shook his head, still amused about the bug meals. “No, not really, I set out to sea in search of home and when I found it I dreamed of never losing the freedom I had found with it.”

Naruto smiled and turned to face the ocean once more “Sounds nice.”

Shanks grinned, “You’re unofficially part of the crew now, Naruto. As long as I sail the seas, you will have a home with me, if you need it.”

Wide blue eyes turned to him in surprise and Shanks suddenly worried he had said something wrong as he noticed water form along the boy’s lower lashes. “Oi, I didn’t mean to...”

The blonde boy shook his head quickly. “Thank you. I... no one has ever offered to share their home with me before.”

Shanks expression softened once more and he reached out and pulled Naruto against him. “No problem kid.”  



	6. Uzumaki Luck

**Uzumaki Luck**

_By Silver Dragonfly_

 

 

* * *

 

There was a soft whoosh of displaced air and then a muffled cheer from behind a closed storage room hatch. Moments later the hatch opened and a blonde head and blue eyes peeked out, studying his surroundings. The test was a success. He could now send clones across to the other world without first sealing them into a scroll.  He soon exited the storage room and wandered through the quiet halls, noticing that the Ship didn’t seem to be moving that much.

“Huh, wonder if they are in a port or anchored at an island.” The blonde mumbled to himself before quickly heading up and onto the very empty deck. “Anyone on board?!” He called out.

“Ah, Naruto! Captain and the crew are in town.” A voice of one of the crew called out from the crow’s nest above.

“You got stuck with watch, Rockstar?” Naruto called back with a grin.

The pirate only shrugged with a grin and waved. “Find the nosiest place in town and you’ll probably find Captain.”

Naruto waved and then quickly slipped off the ship and onto the pier it had been moored against. The town seemed quiet and unconcerned with the pirate ship tied up at their docks. This must be one of the islands under the Red-haired pirate’s protection. He strolled into town, eyes bright as he took in his surroundings. He had visited a few islands and towns before with the crew as they resupplied or spent a few days of shore leave. However, this was the first time he’d gotten to visit without Shank’s knowing he was coming ahead of time. He couldn’t wait to surprise him and the others.

He waved and smiled at people as he traveled further into town keeping out an eye for any of the crew or sounds of the crew already in full party swing. It was at that moment he spotted a couple men in white uniforms with blue trim who were nervously peeking over a hedge at what appeared to be a bar across the lane. Naruto crept up beside them and remained quiet for several minutes as he listened to their nervous whispers.

“We should report this to the Commander.”

“Report what? They’re just drinking in a bar!”

“But they are off guard.”

“They aren’t attacking the town; this is part of Red-haired’s territory.”

Naruto decided to interrupt before the conversation went in another circle. “What you guys watching? Is something happening at the bar?”

“Shhh. We don’t want to draw their attention!” One of the two responded without turning to glance his way.

“Whose attention?” Naruto asked, amused.

“The Red-haired pirates!” The other one hissed back finally glancing at the blonde crouched beside them.

Naruto gave a big grin. “So this is where they are! Thanks I’ve been looking for Shanks-oji. You guys have fun!” he stated before leaving them spluttering and heading into the bar and calling out a greeting. “Shanks-oji! You starting a party without me!?”

The two men in white and blue stared with wide eyes as the blonde teen vanished into the bar where sounds of cheering and called out greetings echoed.

“Did that guy say what I think he said?” he whispered.

“Yeah… he said uncle all right. Maybe we should make that report after all.”

 

 

Benn Beckman watched in amusement as yet another member of the crew cursed, tossed his cards down and then slunk away from the table with a growled statement about the kid being a card shark. There were only two or three crew members left at the poker table where the blonde nephew of his captain had set up and began playing cards with the crew. The crew at first had been thrilled, thinking him an easy target and that if they couldn’t beat the Captain, his nephew was the next best thing. Benn had suspected the game would end with the crew bemoaning the boy’s luck.

He had watched his Captain fleece many a man both in and out of the crew over the years. Had watched his Captain be accused of cheating (this usually ended in a rather large bar fight) and be cheated on, only to still fleece those trying to cheat him. No, when it came to gambling the Captain’s luck was uncanny. This had in turn led to a ship-wide ban for any gambling games with the Captain. Shanks hadn’t minded much, only laughed and demanded more booze in exchange. It seemed though, that the mysterious luck was genetic, and the crew had apparently not put two and two together. They’d probably figure it out once they realized the blue-eyed blonde had fleeced all of them with a grin.

It was at that moment that Yasopp settled on the stool next to him with a groan. “The kid is killing us, Benn.”

Benn chuckled around his cigarette. “He is the Captain’s nephew.” Was his only response and then waited for the reaction.

Yasopp glanced at him out of the corner of his eye then back to the blonde and frowned. Then his eyes widened and he let out a loud curse. “Why didn’t you warn me!” he then demanded of the First mate.

“It is not my duty to protect you from your own stupidity.” Benn replied dryly but his lips curved into a smirk.

Yasopp groaned again and then a speculative look crossed his face. “Which of the two would win against each other?” He then asked.

Benn arched an eyebrow and considered before answering slowly. “The kid, I think.”

“What about the kid?” Shanks asked in a drawl as he came up on Benn’s other side and threw his arm over his first mate’s shoulder.

“Your nephew has nearly finished fleecing the crew, Captain.” Benn replied.

Shanks blinked then guffawed loudly and started ribbing the fleeced crew members.

It was several hours later, with the majority of the crew passed out throughout the bar, that Shanks stared unbelievingly at the table before him.  Across from him, his blonde nephew grinned like a fox who had just caught a fat rabbit as he collected the pot and began tucking his winnings away into a scroll.

They had played poker. The kid had trumped him every hand by the slimmest of margins. A straight flush with one card higher than his own, two pairs with Queens and Tens beat by two pairs of Kings and Jacks. It was uncanny. They had switched to blackjack. The kid NEVER busted. They had tried dice. Even dice Shanks had known were rigged still fell in the kids favor. He had suspected some ninjutsu foolery but the kid hadn’t cheated… or at the very least could not be caught at it.

Benn was the only other one still awake and he only chuckled quietly. “Well Captain, seems we have a new good luck charm on the crew.”

Shanks groaned and his head dropped to the table as he seemed to whimper and moan.

Naruto looked from Shanks to Benn and back again. “Is he going to be all right?” He asked Benn, a bit worried.

“Don’t worry kid. Your uncle just has a flare for the dramatic.”

A fresh wail pierced the air and the crew around them all groaned in response but Benn only chuckled and Naruto, having seen such antics before with his old sensei, grinned. “Don’t worry Shanks-oji. I won’t steal all your money all the time; just every other visit or so.”

The red haired man sighed and sat up. “Well if that’s all, then there is nothing to worry about. You’ll have to pay the bar tab now though, Naruto; no one else has any money left.”

“What!?”

The Red-haired captain laughed loudly.


	7. Bountiful, Red, Red-Haired Pirates

**Bountiful, Red, Red-Haired Pirates**

_By Silver Dragonfly  
_

* * *

_  
_

 Naruto watched in amusement as one of the crew argued with the strange-looking bird before finally dropping some coins into the box the bird carried and accepting a bundle of paper in exchange.

“What was that all about?” Naruto asked as the crewmember approached.

“Blasted News Coos are always trying to up the cost of the paper, but Benn and Captain like to keep up-to-date on events.” The crew member explained. “You want to take them the paper, kid?”

Naruto shrugged, “Sure.” He accepted the bundle of papers and turned, heading to the navigation cabin. He paged through the bundle, curious, as he stepped through the door.

“What do you have there, Naruto?” Benn asked as he looked up from a log book at the blonde teen.

“Newspaper and… wanted flyers, it looks like.” He answered as he studied them.

“Ah yes, we like to keep an eye on the rookies coming up through Paradise. Sometimes you can spot a familiar face or someone we may want to consider recruiting. Also gives us an idea of what to expect when at least one rookie crew every season decides they want to challenge a Yonko.” Benn explained as he pulled out a file. “Here are all the ones we’ve had eyes on for the past year. Why don’t you compare the new ones and see what you can find?”

Naruto settled down on the bench and began paging through the stack of posters while comparing the names and faces to the new ones from that day’s paper.

“It’s kind of like a Bingo book.” He stated mostly to himself.

“Bingo book?” Benn asked.

“Ah, the different shinobi villages all have their own and list enemy shinobi that they want dead with a reward in them. They usually have some basic information about the targets like rank and aliases. For example, one of my sensei was known as Copy-Cat, because of how he could mimic and steal other shinobi’s techniques, and was said to have copied over a thousand jutsu.” Naruto explained. Looking back at the stack, a poster caught his eye. “Surgeon of Death, that’s not creepy at all…” Naruto muttered, studying the poster.

“One of the newer rising rookies; rumors give him some interesting contacts and some unique abilities, most likely from a devil fruit.” Benn noted. “So, do you have an alias and bounty in enemy bingo books?” He asked, curious. Benn blinked then, as the blonde boy’s shoulders slumped and he seemed to wilt. “Is it that bad?” He asked.

“No… it’s just… After the Fourth Shinobi War none of the villages would list me.” Naruto answered sullenly.

Benn frowned; surely he wasn’t that weak compared to his peers. He had been confident that he sensed a great strength in the kid and he had yet to meet the real version. “You were part of a war, and no one wanted you dead?” Benn asked, a bit skeptic.

“Yeah… I kind of helped end the war, which saved a lot of people.” Naruto offered feeling a bit embarrassed.

Benn raised an eyebrow. He’d have to tease Shanks about how his nephew ended wars rather than start them. He could tell the subject made the boy a bit uncomfortable though. He reached behind him and pulled out another file. “Here, this one is all the crew’s bounties.” Benn offered, smiling.

Naruto accepted the file and flipped through the first few. “Wow Benn, your hair used to be black!”

Benn grunted. “I blame your uncle.”

Naruto glanced up at the First Mate and smirked, a spark speaking of coming mischief in his blue eyes that went unnoticed by the older man.  


Blue eyes gleamed with anticipation as he waited for a new Kage Bunshin to arrive. He’d summoned one himself earlier and dispelled it to get the request for supplies back to the Boss and was now waiting for the response. With a poof of displaced air, blue eyes met matching blue.

“Get the stuff?” Naruto One asked.

“Oh, Yeah.” Naruto Two answered. “Boss wants pictures if you can manage it.”

“No problem.” The first replied. Message passed, the second clone handed over a scroll and then saluted before dispelling.

With a small application of chakara to unseal the scroll’s contents; whisker-marked cheeks spread into a grin. It was time to get to work.  


A horrified scream spread throughout the ship, stirring the still slumbering crew into wakefulness. The source of the scream was soon traced to the Captain’s quarters.

“Oi, Captain, you all right?” Lucky Roo asked through the door.

The door was suddenly thrown open and the gathered crew stared in shock at their captain. Gone was the vibrant red hair the Captain, and thus pirate crew, was known for, and it was replaced by an almost glimmering silver. Tears poured down Shanks face.

“It’s over!” The Captain wailed. “I’ll have to retire. No one will call me Red-Haired again!” Shanks blubbered.

“What is all this about?” Benn’s voice carried over the crowd.

Shanks shrieked once more as his first mate came into view. Deep red strands framed the first mate’s face and hung down his back in a slightly messy tail.

“Benn! How could you!” Shanks accused. It was at that moment that another crewmember exclaimed and they realized Benn was not the only new redhead on board.

Shanks sniffled as he took in the injustice of the situation. Then a hint of blonde in the crowd caught his eye. “Naruto!” Shanks cried out and, as one, the crew stepped away from the teen.

Shanks approached his nephew, eyes bright with unshed tears. “Why Naruto?” He sniffled. “Why would you ruin me like this?”

The blonde fidgeted. “Um…” He squirmed looking sideways, glanced at his uncle’s face again, and then sighed. “I’ve never felt guilty for a prank before…” the blonde grumbled. Naruto raised one hand, his fingers forming a specific shape, and then touched his uncle on the chest with the other. “Kai.” He muttered and the silvery strands were quickly overtaken by red once more.

Shanks blinked, his eyes crossing to stare at the once again familiar red strands hanging from his brow. He let out a huge sigh of relief. “Thank god, I’m too young to retire!”

“Hey! What about us?!” One of the crew exclaimed.

“Oh,” Naruto paused and then looked a bit sheepish, “I used hair dye on you guys.” He stated and then shrugged. “You are supposed to be the Red-Haired Pirates after all.”

There was the quick sound of a rifle being cocked and then fired, followed by the now familiar popping sound of Naruto’s clone.

Shanks blinked, frowned, and then turned to his first mate a dark glint in his gaze. “Benn, did you just shoot my nephew!?!”

The redheaded Benn glared and then lit a cigarette. “Your point?”

Shanks stared at his first mate and then grinned. “Aww, is Benn being an angry redhead?”

The older man exhaled and then turned away, closing his own cabin’s door with a thud. Shanks grinned widely, he would have fun with this for months.

 


	8. Wanted

**Wanted**

_By Silver Dragonfly_

 

* * *

 

Naruto frowned as he studied the tangle of line between his hands and looked again at the neat bowline knot he was trying to replicate. He sighed as he tried once more and somehow managed to get the line twisted around one of his ankles.

“Having trouble, Naruto?”  Yasopp asked as he strolled across the deck and then plopped down next to his fellow blonde.

Naruto grumbled incoherently as he struggled to get the line off his ankle.

Yasopp laughed as he reached over and with two quick tugs had the line falling loose to the deck. “You almost had it there. Keep at it and you’ll be able to work the sail lines with us in no time.”

Naruto looked at the rope skeptically. “I don’t know why, but ninja wire seems much less complicated.”

“Here, let me show you again; I always wanted to teach my son how to tie sailor’s knots.”

“You have a son?” Naruto asked surprised. Before Yasopp could respond there were several loud complaints from the various crew members within listening range.

“Ah, shut up! Naruto hasn’t heard about Usopp yet!” Yasopp shouted back at them an eyebrow twitching.

Naruto chuckled. “You must really care about him.”

Yasopp grinned. “You bet! I had to leave him behind in East Blue with his mom when he was little and the sea called me. I imagine he’s about your age now.”

Before anymore could be said there was a yell and commotion across the deck. In moments, one of the crew carrying a bundle of papers was rushing towards the quarterdeck and the navigation room. “Captain! Captain! Big News!” The crewman shouted as he vanished into the interior.

“Come on, Naruto, let’s go find out what all the fuss is about.” Yasopp suggested rolling to his feet and then offering the teen his hand to pull him up to his own feet.

There was an answering shout of shock in Shanks’ voice and then rounds of cheers and various shouts from the gathering crew as they moved forward.

“Oi, let us through!” Yasopp shouted and dealt a few well-placed elbow nudges as he pushed his way through the crowd toward the doorway. The crew seemed to get the idea and soon separated just as Shanks appeared in the doorway with a grin. He scanned the crowd his gaze finding Naruto and settling.

“Well Naruto, seems you are officially part of the crew now.” And with that statement he held up a single sheet of paper.

Naruto blinked and studied the paper, his eyes widening as he took in an image of his own grinning and whisker marked face. Below it in bold lettering clearly printed: “Naruto, nephew of Red-Hair; Wanted: Dead or Alive – 65,000 Berries.”

“What!” Naruto shrieked stunned. “I haven’t even done anything!”

Shanks looked a bit nervous at that as the crew around them began to scatter, many of them patting Naruto on the back, others stopped several before they could destroy the clone with their too-enthusiastic support. “Ah, sorry about that, it’s because you’ve been associated directly with me, I’m afraid.”

Naruto blinked and a pang of sadness crossed his face before he shook his head and grinned. “Well I do have a pretty bad-ass Uncle after all. I suppose it’s only natural.”

Shanks eyed his nephew for a moment then grinned. “You’ve got that right.” He then shifted his attention to the excited crew. “All right you gossip hens, we haven’t had a new bounty on the crew in some time so let’s celebrate!”

There were loud cheers in response and it didn’t take long for a party to be in full swing.

It wasn’t until much later, when the party had wound down to clustered groups and occasional drunken shout-outs that Shanks managed to find a mostly quiet space of the deck with just him and his nephew. He sat down next to the now quiet blonde and sighed as he looked up at the sky and stars above them.

“Sorry Naruto, I should have forewarned you that something like this was likely to happen.” Shanks stated and then waited to see what his nephew would say.

“It’s fine. I should have expected as much; it just caught me off guard. I figured I’d get one eventually after tagging along on some fights with you after all, but this… just because I’m related to you? Reminded me a bit too much of the hell I grew up with, I guess. At least the picture is good.” Naruto muttered, knowing that there was no point in trying to hide things from his Uncle. If there was anything he had learned about the older red-head, it was that even when he acted like an idiot, he saw way more than he let on.

“You want to talk about it?” Shanks asked gently.

Naruto shook his head quickly. “Maybe some other time, but there’s no point in spoiling tonight’s party with it.”

Shanks accepted his answer and sat in comfortable silence for several moments before speaking again. “The Absolute Justice policy of the Marines and World Government is a glorified excuse for genocide and bloodline purges. As soon as it became known you were my relation they would have put a bounty on your head or had you flat-out killed. I suppose it’s a relief that the real you is out of their reach… although I am going to have to retaliate against the next few marine ships and bases we come across. A bounty of 65,000 is a very respectable bounty to start out with, even in the Paradise part of the Grand Line, but here in the New World it’s an insult, and really a stab more at me than you.”

Naruto stared at his Uncle with wide eyes, his mouth hanging slightly open. “You…”

“Congratulations on officially becoming a pirate though.”

“How… I mean, why is it an insult?”

“It’s just high enough to make the bounty hunters and other pirate crews that sail these waters take note. If you were captured or killed by some other pirate crew or the Marines... it would mean I was unable to protect you. This would then be seen as a sign of weakness and I’d have all sorts of riff raff coming to give me hell. Would make things interesting for a while I suppose, but not worth the risk to you.” Shanks explained.

Naruto stared and then didn’t know if he should be yelling in anger or crying at the joy his uncle’s statements gave him. “You’d care that much…”

Shanks turned to him with a sharp gaze cutting off the boy’s words. “You are family, Naruto. No one hurts my friends, my crew or my family. No one.”

Naruto sat surprised for a few moments then grinned. “Well then… I guess I’ll have to show them that I’m not such a pushover.”

Shanks laughed loudly. “That’s the spirit.”


	9. Apprenticeship Not Required

**Apprenticeship Not Required**

_By Silver Dragonfly_   
  


 

* * *

 

“Captain! Mihawk’s sail has been sighted.” A crewmember called out.

Shanks looked up from the maps he and Naruto had been going over and arched an eyebrow. “He must have seen Naruto’s poster. I thought we might be getting a visit soon.” He then turned to Naruto, “Hey kiddo, mind stepping out of sight for a little bit? Let’s see what Mihawk has to say before you reveal yourself.”

Naruto raised an eyebrow, but shrugged and did as asked. The island they were on was heavily covered in vegetation so it was simple enough to vanish into the surrounding forest.

Shanks, meanwhile, took some time and gathered up the maps before rolling them up and tucking them back into their carrying case. They had begun working out tentative plans for Naruto to up his bounty to something a bit more respectable for the New World and, as his nephew had put it, one he had actually earned.

Shanks patiently awaited Mihawk’s arrival, and the man soon appeared on the trail leading to the clearing the redhead had claimed for the day. “And what brings the Government’s Shichubukai, Dracule Mihawk, here to visit a well-known pirate, today?” Shanks asked, mirth in his tone.

The man in question stared at him without blinking and in one quick motion a piece of paper appeared pinned by a dagger to the tree beside the Red-haired Pirate’s head.

Shanks glanced at the poster and then back to the man. “This is not new news, Mihawk, this was in the papers a week ago.”

“Explain.” Mihawk demanded his tone dark.

“Oh you know how these things work, Hawkeye. One’s siblings have children, which mean one has nieces and/or nephews…”

The long black blade of Mihawk’s sword arched over the table resting its tip a scant distance from the redhead’s throat.

“Do not make me repeat myself, Akagami.” Mihawk demanded icily.

It was at that moment that there was a brief displacement of air, indicating movement, and Mihawk found his gaze filled, not with red hair and an insufferable smirk, but by blue eyes, blonde hair, and a teasing grin.

“I’ve seen some crazy eyes before, but never ones that looked like a bird’s. That’s where the alias Hawkeye is from, huh?” The teen asked as he crouched, perched atop the black blade, studying Mihawk closely.

Shanks chuckled. “Mihawk, meet my nephew, Uzumaki Naruto. Naruto, this is my longtime friend and rival, Dracule Mihawk. He currently works as a pirate for the government and, as you can see, has a fixation with long pointy objects.”

“Get off, Boy.” Mihawk snarled.

The blonde grinned and calmly leapt from the blade to the ground without any worry.

Mihawk studied the youth a moment, finally letting out a long sigh as he sheathed his sword. “I was unaware you had any siblings, Akagami.”

Shanks shrugged dismissively. “I’ve had no contact with any blood kin for over thirty years. I had not known I had a nephew until Naruto, here, found me. He does remind me of his mother, though.”

Mihawk raised an eyebrow at that. “You have a sister?”

“Had; she seems to have passed some time ago. Now: surely curiosity about my family isn’t the only thing that brought you out to see me. Itching for a fight?”

Mihawk scoffed. “Hardly; there is no challenge in facing a cripple.”

Shanks pouted.

Mihawk then produced another bit of parchment from his coat, and offered the other man what appeared to be another wanted poster, this one still rolled up.

Shanks accepted the tube of paper and unwound it.

“These two posters should be in the public papers this week.” Mihawk stated as Shanks’ eyes opened wide, a grin spreading across his face.

“That crazy kid! What did he do to triple his bounty!? And is this the swordsman you mentioned?” Shanks asked, his grin becoming wider each moment.

“Yes, that is Straw-hat’s first mate. As pictured, he has a unique three-sword style. The upper tiers of the Marines were all ruffled about Crocodile being up to mischief in Alabasta. Straw-hat got tangled up in it and took him down. Officially, the credit is being given to some marine captain who happened to be investigating in Alabasta at the time. The fact that a rookie out of East Blue has taken out a Shichibukai so soon after entering the Grand Line has gotten their attention.”

Naruto peered over Shanks’ shoulder at the two posters. “Who are they?”

Mihawk blinked, surprised. “He hasn’t told you about his apprentice?” Mihawk hadn’t been able to get the Red-haired Pirate to shut up about the straw-hat kid on his last visit.

Shanks just grinned, “Oi, Benn, Yasopp! Tell the Crew we are having a party! Luffy’s bounty went up!”

There were answering exclamations of surprise and excitement and it was clear that soon the entire crew would know of the news.

“Will you be staying to drink with us, Mihawk?” Shanks asked unable to stop grinning as he glanced up from the two posters.

“No.” Mihawk stated quickly. “I will leave you to your drunken foolishness.”

Shanks only laughed and then focused his attention back to his nephew. “Drink with me, Naruto, and I’ll tell you all about this loud-mouthed brat I met back in East Blue.”

Mihawk’s lips twitched in a smirk as he turned to head back the way he had come. His gaze slowly tracked over the other visible crew members, noticing now that there was much more ’red‘ present than he’d ever noted before. Mihawk paused in his steps and turned to face the Red-Haired Pirate’s first mate. “Beckman…”

The first mate remained silent, as he drew in a long breath through his cigarette, and exhaled slowly. “He’s the Captain’s nephew all right. Damn brat.”

 Mihawk snorted and grinned. “Good Luck,” was his final parting words as he left the clearing to the sounds of Shanks’ storytelling and laughter.

Beckman watched the Shichibukai until he was out of sight and then turned back to watch his Captain and much younger crewmate. His lips curved into a smile as he listened to the enthusiastic re-telling of how this loud-mouthed kid had stabbed himself below the eye in his attempt to convince Shanks to let him join the Red-Haired Pirates.

Other crewmembers wandered in and out of the group surrounding Captain and nephew as stories were told. Those who had been present, at the time, added bits to the story as they came near, while others completely side-tracked the conversation into various tales of adventure before it came back to their time spent on that particular island in East Blue.

Benn remained at his post, watching in amusement as the afternoon progressed into nightfall and the pile of empty bottles surrounding Captain and nephew continued to grow. He had been tempted to intervene when the impromptu drinking contest had started (after all the boy was still just a kid), but the blonde had assured  everyone it was fine when questioned, as this would not be the first drinking contest he’d been dragged into. Naruto had at that point shared a few stories about his godfather and adoptive grandmother and their drinking habits and vices that nearly had the Captain choking on his own booze.

Really, with the surrogate family the kid had told stories about, it was no wonder he fit in so well with the crew. The kid was practically raised as a pirate, minus the sailing. Although, when this thought had been voiced, he had vehemently declared he was a shinobi. Benn suspected it was close enough to be a moot point, but humored the kid anyways.

Evening and night had blended into the darkest hours of morning before Benn’s attention was spiked once more by the drinking duo. A muttered groan from his captain that was answered by a very cheery tone caught his attention and he raised an eyebrow in surprise.

“Hey, Shanks-oji, you all right?” Naruto asked, amusement filling his voice.

Shanks groaned and glared at his nephew. Was there three of them now? “Kid, how are you still sitting upright? We’ve had more than enough alcohol to knock someone of your size out hours ago.”

The blonde shrugged. “Did we? I couldn’t tell.”

Shanks gave in and flopped on his back with another moan. Sleep sounded good about now.

“How…”

“No blood.”

Shanks blinked at him blearily, what was the kid going on about now?

“Kage Bunshin. I’m a chakra construct. Means I have no blood stream. No blood, no way to get drunk.” The blonde explained with a cheeky grin.

Shanks stared, uncomprehending, for several long silent moments and then let out a long string of curses which slowly morphed into cries about wasted alcohol.

Benn chuckled as the blonde poked his slightly twitching uncle with a toe to see if he’d be moving more than his mouth anytime soon. Yeah, the kid was a pirate all right.  



	10. Misbehaving Puppies

**Misbehaving Puppies**

_By Silver Dragonfly_  
  


* * *

 

“Another Round!” Shanks called out gleefully as several of his crewman and a few locals cursed and groaned while the blonde-haired teen collected his winnings. The scene had become a familiar one in whatever port the Yonko and his crew made berth. They would find their choice tavern in the nearby village and settle in for a night or two of drinking, gambling, and a good time.

There had been a few minor incidents with locals who felt the pirates were cheating them, but when it was pointed out that the kid beat everyone, including their Captain, well, what more could they say? The kid was a good sport about it, and usually tipped the tavern staff well, which kept everyone happy. The Red-Haired pirates had always made it a habit to try to keep on friendly terms with their more favored ports and supply posts, after all.

No sooner had the round of drinks found their mates, and the well-used deck of cards been shuffled, than there was a bit of commotion at the doorway.

Several pairs of eyes watched casually as what appeared to be another pirate crew stumbled in through the doors and began shouting out orders for drink and food. The bartender glanced at those already present, and when they remained calm and unaffected, quickly set to serving the new patrons.

“So what’s all this?” One of the new arrivals demanded as he studied the poker table and the large pile of winnings next to the blonde teen.

“Poker, of course; would you like to join us?” Naruto offered brightly.

The pirate scoffed, “Aren’t you too young to be in here kid?”

Naruto only laughed, “My sensei always said if you were old enough to kill, you were old enough to drink. What do you say, Mister?”

The pirate snorted and pulled up a chair. As a few more of the new arrivals came over to see what was of interest, several of those already sitting offered up their places claiming they were done losing for the night.

Shanks watched, amused, from across the room. The kid had it down to an art; it was no surprise Naruto had managed to clean out his entire crew and himself that first night. He wondered idly if he’d get the chance to meet some of Naruto’s surrogate family, if they ever did visit Naruto’s home and the island of Uzu. He would love to meet whoever it was that taught the kid to gamble, or learn if the kid had been uncannily lucky from the start. His musings were interrupted, however, when Yasopp slid into the seat next to him.

“They’re Puppies.” The currently strawberry-blondish-haired man stated with tones of both amusement and disappointment. “They somehow managed to work their way through Paradise under the Marine’s radar. Hell, they didn’t even go through Fishman island to get into the New World. They ‘legally’ crossed the red line. From what Rockstar got out of a few, and what we overheard, they have the “wolf in sheep’s clothing” act down to a science. Merchant ship on the surface; pirate cut straight through to the bones and down to the keel. As for strength, without knowing anything about who they may have faced or taken out, and with no bounties, it’s hard to say. No mention of devil-fruit abilities though.”

Shanks raised an eyebrow at the news, his eyes and senses passing over the newer arrivals a little more carefully this time than they had before, not that anyone outside of his crew would notice.

No further warning or orders would be needed. The Red-Haired crew knew what cues to watch for. They would keep an eye on these Puppies without seeming to, but they would not let the Puppies spoil their fun either. The bar served another round of drinks, and the friendly drinking atmosphere continued, unaffected by the darker undertones of the pirate patrons.

It was not until several hours later that the tension began to spark and snap.

“I don’t care what you or your buddies say!” One of the pirates at the poker table snarled. “You’re cheating, kid, and you’re gonna pay for it!”

The man rose to his feet in a rush, upsetting the table and sending cards, drinks, and coins flying. His buddies rose on either side of him, all of them looking ready for blood.

Naruto blinked, “Hey now, there’s no need for that. How about I buy you guys another round?” the blonde offered trying to prevent what he suspected would soon become a full-fledged bar fight.

“Oh, it’s much too late for that.” The man said darkly then lunged forward, bottle upraised and coming down at the teen’s face quickly. The blonde caught the man’s wrist and tried to untangle himself from chair and table. One of the others darted at his unguarded side forcing the blonde to twist and block the dagger with a kunai. The first man’s other arm came down with a knife aiming for the blonde’s shoulder and sliced into orange fabric. Time seemed to freeze and then the blonde vanished in a whoosh of displaced air.

The three would-be brawlers stared in open mouthed shock.

“Where did he go?!”

“What did you do to him?!

“A devil’s fruit?!”

“How the hell should I know?! I only hit him with my knife and then he was gone!”

“Boss.”

“How does someone just vanish?!”

“Boss!”

“BOSS!”

"What!?!" The first man snarled once more and then froze as he took in their surroundings. He spotted several of the bar's other patrons pinning his crew against the walls and tables. The crewman who had called for his attention clutched a bounty poster displaying the blonde kid that had just vanished. The so-called Boss’s eyes opened wide and an uneasy feeling spread up his spine. A throat cleared behind him and he slowly turned, taking in the crowd now surrounding him and his men. Weapons were drawn and not one of the surrounding individuals had a smile on their face. His gaze stopped to rest on vibrant red hair and he whimpered.

“My nephew,” the red-haired man spoke slowly, “does not cheat at poker.”

“I…”

“Oh, don’t even try. There is no excuse you can make that will make this any better.” A man that could only be the Red-Haired Pirate’s first mate stated flatly. “In fact, it will likely only make it worse.”

The cornered man whimpered and his crewmembers began to faint and crumple to the ground all around him.

“Ignorant, insolent, and foolish Puppies without anything to back it up do not belong in the New World. I think you should find your way back to Paradise, Puppy.” The Redhead spoke slowly, his voice filled with disdain and mockery.

The ‘puppy’ promptly fainted and fell to the floor a dark puddle spreading from around him.

Several of the Red-Haired Pirates snickered. “Oh you got him good, Captain.”

Shanks sighed and the tense air dissipated. “Raid their ship, boys, and give them a good sendoff back to Paradise.” He wrinkled his nose as he approached the bar and sat down; letting his men get to work. The tavern owner set a glass and bottle before the red-haired man who nodded in thanks. “Sorry about the mess.”

The tavern owner just nodded, then paused, “The blonde kid… he…”

Shanks smiled, “He’s fine. It’s a particular trick of his, is all.”

The tavern owner nodded and smiled in return, he had liked the kid.


	11. Tickled Haki

**Tickled Haki**

_By Silver Dragonfly_   
  


* * *

 

“Captain!” The look-out called out, “Blue gulls on the horizon at 2 o’clock!”

Eyes shadowed by red-hair looked up and a large grin spread across the Captain’s face as it was revealed. A sense of anticipation filled the air as the crew all waited for the expected order.

“Well then, boys, it seems we’ve got some blue-gulls to catch up to.”

Bodies began to move quickly as orders were called out from the helm. The Red Force’s course altered and the ship began to pick up speed.

Shanks continued to grin. He had been itching for a fight ever since the… well; he wasn’t sure what to even call it… with the Rookie Puppies the night before. But it had left a sour taste in his mouth and he found himself, not for the first time, wishing he had a way to send a message to his nephew. Marine Sails on the horizon was just what he needed to hear; he wondered if there would be anyone of particular note aboard the unlucky ship.

“Ah, they’ve caught sight of us, Captain! They are turning to meet us.” The look-out called down.

Shanks grinned. “Good. Any distinguishing marks on the ship?”

“No, Captain, looks like a standard warship.”

Shanks nodded. No personal markings meant it was unlikely to carry any of the Vice-Admirals, and he had not heard any rumors of the Admirals themselves in this area. “All right, boys, let’s show them what we think of that bounty and alias they so kindly gave Naruto.”

There were shouts of agreement from across the ship and then the cannon fire began.

Shanks chuckled as his crew deflected enemy cannonballs and the two ships neared each other. “Grapple her and board!” He shouted out.  Angry shouts of challenge and cursing filled the air around him as lines and hooks were thrown. Projectiles began to fly through the air in both directions as the Red-haired Pirates began to board and bring down the Marine forces. Pointed barbs and dark laughter were thrown at the marines as they were defeated. Yelps and screams filled the air. 

“Shanks-oji!” a welcome and familiar voice called out. Shanks’ grin lost its dark edge and brightened at the sound as he turned. The red-haired Captain then let out a shocked yelp as he ducked under a barrage of kunai; startled marines let out yelps and curses behind him.

“What did you do with all my winnings?!” The blonde teen yelled at him as he ignored the fight and closed with his uncle aboard the marine vessel, kunai sparking against Shanks’ sword as he brought it up to block. “You better not have spent it all on booze!”

The surrounding deck stilled and went silent as nearby fighters turned to stare at the two. A flurry of shouted comments filled the air from various marines that had been facing the Red-haired Pirate only moments before.

“No way…” a marine muttered, “He really does have a nephew!”

“Red-hair stole his nephew’s money! What a Bastard!”

“The kid attacked Red-hair! He’s got balls!”

“Naruto, of course I didn’t spend it all on booze!” Shanks answered and blocked another strike from his nephew.

The blonde teen narrowed his blue eyes skeptically. “Oh? I suppose you just offered to buy drinks for those cheating bastards, after they tried to stab me?”

Shanks gasped and reeled back. “You would accuse your own uncle of such!”

Naruto grinned slyly, “Well, you aren’t denying it!”

“That’s it, brat!” Shanks replied and then lunged forward to strike. “I’ll have you doing deck chores for a month!”

The blow was blocked. “I’d like to see you try, old man!”

“Old!” Shanks shrieked.

The marines stared in open-mouthed shock as the pair continued exchanging blows in front of them.

“They’re completely ignoring us…” one of the marines muttered.

Across the marine ship deck, Yasopp chuckled from where he battled beside Benn, both of them taking ranged shots and casually bludgeoning marines that got too close. “Just what did Captain do with that money?”

Benn snorted. “Paid off the bar tab, tipped the bartender, and bought all the surplus booze they had in stock.”

Yasopp grinned, “So, he did spend it all on booze.”

It was at that moment that one of the marines decided it was a good time to take a swing at the uncle and nephew dueling each other across the main deck of the Marine vessel.  All action seemed to freeze as the Marine’s blade sliced between the two and clashed with both sword and kunai. Simultaneously, the blonde and redhead whirled to focus on the interloper, scowling, and snarled: “STAY OUT OF IT!”

A wave of force seemed to emanate out from the pair causing the Marine and several others behind him to teeter and collapse. Neither blonde nor redhead paid attention as the two had already quickly resumed their duel, their focus on each other, insults flying.

“Benn, did that haki come from the Captain?” Yasopp asked carefully.

Beckman narrowed his gaze and lit a new cigarette as he studied the passed out marines and then glanced to the dueling pair. “I’m not sure. Captain’s control is good, but he didn’t seem surprised.”

“Or he just didn’t bother to notice.” Yasopp offered. Shanks could be ridiculously oblivious sometimes.

Benn sighed and then cursed as he spotted a nearby marine taking aim at the dueling pair. “That idiot has a death wish!” He raised his own rifle, and as the marine’s shot was fired, Benn’s own shot knocked the Marine’s weapon from his hands.  Everything stilled as suddenly the blonde teen vanished in a faint haze of smoke. Shanks froze in place, his eyes shadowed as he slowly turned and began to stalk across the deck. The rest of the Red-haired Pirates had similarly stopped laughing. They were now all frowning as they watched their captain cross the deck. The marines blinked, stunned, and began glancing nervously at the Red-haired crew.

“Just what,” Shanks began, his voice cold, “did you think shooting my nephew would gain?”

The marine stammered, whined, and then seemed to almost collapse into himself.

Shanks made a noise of disgust and turned, his cloak billowing behind him. “I’m returning to the ship. Benn, I want this excuse for a tub sunk.”

“Of course, Captain.” Benn replied and then the crew set to work. Gone were the cheers, taunts and shouts. The Red-haired crew now moved in silence, the only noise that of their weapons and fists hitting flesh.  In moments, Benn spotted Yasopp scampering back up from below deck and heading back to the Red Force, the signal clear. Powder was set, it was time to leave. Already Marines were scurrying to lifeboats and collecting wounded, a gruff man with the insignia of a commodore ignoring the pirates themselves and focusing on his men. Benn scoffed: this was the New World and they should have never turned to meet the Red Force, not that it would have saved them. The Red-haired Pirates defended, and if necessary, avenged their own.

Benn was the last of the Red-haired crew to cross back to the Red Force, and he gave the order to cut loose and set sail as soon as his foot touched down on the deck. He paid little attention to the crew as they set to their work, and instead sought out his captain.  It took him only a few moments, stretching out his own awareness to determine the captain had taken refuge in the storage room that held Naruto’s strange seal. He moved silently through the corridors and slipped through the doorway of the storage room before closing the hatch behind him. He said nothing as he leaned against the wall and waited.

“The kid did good. We’re going to have to find some barren island and have a full-out duel, sometime.” Shanks stated, a smile tugging at his lips.

“You weren’t holding back much, then?” Benn asked somewhat surprised.

“Oh I was holding back, but so was the kid. He wasn’t hard-pressed at all. It was all just a game, for both of us, really. I had been considering popping him myself just to freak out the marines.”

Benn waited several moments before deciding he’d have to speak up; Shanks was probably trying to determine if he had detected it or not. “And the haki?”

Shanks sighed, proving to Benn that this was what Shanks had wanted to see if he had noticed.

“I’m not sure.” Shanks finally answered after a moment. “I don’t believe it was me, but the brat was pushing it with his taunts, and it’s so hard to get a clear read off him. You’ve noticed that, haven’t you? These clones feel strange in terms of haki: like they’re there, but not there constantly; it’s rather distracting and almost feels like I’m being tickled every time I try to read him.”

Benn snorted. Only Shanks would claim something tickled his haki. “Conqueror’s Haki… your family is full of monsters, Captain.” Shanks only shrugged and continued studying the seal inked into the wood flooring.

“Will you teach him?” Benn asked after a few moments.

“If he is ever able to come in person… leaving it untrained would be foolish.” Shanks answered, remembering his own first experiences with the ability; it had nearly cost innocent lives.  “It’s probably been mistaken as that “Killing Intent” that Gamatsukai told us about before from that world. He may have more control over it already then it seemed earlier, or perhaps the Kage Bunshin just can’t control it in the same way.”

Benn accepted this answer; he had expected as much.

It was at that moment there was a tickle of something across both pirates’ senses and the seal glowed blue. There was a whoosh of air and a glaring blonde suddenly stood before them. “I heard what Benn said to Yasopp, Shanks-oji. You did spend all my winnings on booze.”

Shanks chuckled and reached for the newest Kage Bunshin, ruffling his hair. “You’ll just have to win more, then.”


	12. Pop! Goes the Bunshin

**Pop! Goes the Bunshin**

_By Silver Dragonfly  
_

* * *

 

Naruto suddenly stiffened and hissed a muttered curse, lifting a hand and running it through his hair in frustration.

“Naruto-san? Is everything all right?” the young woman who had been guiding him toward the village of Hidden Mist asked in concern.

“Ah, it’s fine. Just remembered something I had forgotten is all.” He explained and gave her a reassuring grin.

She studied him for a moment before accepting his answer, and then continued to lead him through the village.

Inwardly, Naruto sighed. That was the tenth Kage Bunshin that had been ‘killed’ by either bounty hunters, marines, or other pirates in the last two weeks. This last one had barely left Konoha before it had been popped. His uncle had to be getting a bit pissed by now. Hell, Naruto himself was getting fed up with it. This was one of those times he really wished he could overcharge the Kage Bunshin for more durability. He’d tried to do that, several times in fact. Unfortunately, they just didn’t work that way. Overpowering the jutsu simply meant volume instead of quality; a lot of volume in his case, but not what he’d been hoping for in practice.

Naruto had even tried some with nature energy, which were in fact far more durable, but they had their own risks. He wasn’t certain a Kage Bunshin formed with nature energy could make the jump across worlds and still be stable. He couldn’t seal a nature-formed Kage Bunshin in a scroll, either. Having Bunshin gather the nature energy in that world seemed favorable, but he wasn’t sure if nature energy flowed the same way it did in the Elemental Nations and the last thing he wanted was to start sinking The Red Force with stone toad statues when  it went wrong, if it did. He also wasn’t certain that a clone turning into a toad wouldn’t also rebound back on him.

The worst part of the whole mess right now though wasn’t even the Kage Bunshin durability factor, but that he wouldn’t be able to send a replacement for a couple of weeks, at best. Most likely it would be a month or more. The anchor to the seal matrix that he used to send the Kage Bunshin was in Konoha, and that was where he would not be returning for some time.

Stupid diplomatic mission keeping him away from the village, but he couldn’t say no when he had been asked to take this mission. It meant too much for him to be helping to establish a lasting peace across the Elemental Nations to refuse.  It had been Ero-Sennin’s dream. A dream Naruto had inherited, and one which they were too close to achieving after the Fourth War to throw away just because Naruto didn’t want to play nice with dignitaries and travel all over the Elemental Nations. He’d have to explain it to Shanks… that and other things, he realized.

He wished this last Kage Bunshin had had time to tell Shanks he wouldn’t be around for a while, and he hoped his uncle would forgive his sudden absence.

Naruto briefly considered making a scroll and summoning Gamatsukai to deliver it, but no, that would take months and put Gamatsukai at unnecessary risk. He would just have to be patient. His nose wrinkled at the thought. He definitely needed to do something to make it clear to the different factions of that world that he was no pushover soon, and a Kage Bunshin was just not going to cut it.

He slipped his hand in a pocket and linked a finger through the handle on the specialized Kunai he had hidden there. In that, at least, this mission was serving a second purpose. He’d found several old markers his father had set up that he had been able to restore for his own use. After this tour of all the Elemental Nations, he’d have a network of the markers and would likely be able to travel from one end of the Elemental Nations to the other in minutes.  He only needed a few more long-distance tests with the Toads and he’d be ready for the biggest jump of them all.

 

* * *

 

Shanks, carefree, redhead, pirate, and one of the four emperors of the New World, was not happy, nor was his crew. The last Kage Bunshin had been killed over a week ago, and there had not been a new arrival since. Shanks had checked the strange seal daily, if not several times a day, to make sure a message hadn’t arrived in place of one of the clones, and he was beginning to worry when each day passed with nothing appearing. Had something happened to his nephew? Was the blonde mad that his clones kept getting killed? He had never seemed bothered by the accidents before, but the last few had not been accidents. He knew the kid was not exactly innocent as a shinobi, but he didn’t know if he had truly understood the danger the bounty poster had brought. Shanks himself was realizing he’d underestimated just how attractive a potential “weakling” family member of his would be to the leeches. This had led to his current brooding mood.

 It did not matter how many times he had accidentally popped the Kage Bunshin that was his nephew by mistake. It did not matter how many times the clones had been dispelled by his crew mates. The fact that ten… TEN, of his nephew’s clones had been ‘killed’ by outside parties left both him and his crew in a very, very sour mood.

It did not matter that none of the hits had actually been fatal, just inconvenient. No, what mattered is that others had dared to attack him at all, and there would be payment made for that.

 “Captain,” Benn’s voice reached him from outside the shadowy corner Shanks had been brooding in. “We are making our approach to Hunter’s Cove now.”

Shanks’ eyes flashed and a dark smile crossed his lips. He had been too charitable to this cove of pirate hunters lurking on the edges of his territory. They had avoided confrontation with the Red-Haired Pirates, and so he had let them be. They had even made themselves mildly useful in clearing out all sorts of rookie riff-raff. They had crossed the line, however.

Seven of the recently deceased clones were at the fault of residents of Hunter’s Cove.

Shanks rose to his feet and stepped out of the shadows to survey his crew, eyes glinting in the moonlight.  He hardly raised his voice as he gave his orders. “No quarter, burn every rat-hole, hovel, and slum. This cesspit has hurt one of our own.”

There was a resulting roar of approval as The Red Force glided into the port. Alarms across the shoreline began to clang.

Shanks eyes glinted and his tone was dark. “Open Fire.”

No sooner had the words left his lips then cannon fire roared out from the sides of the ship to shower the piers and portside buildings. Hunter’s Cove had no hope. A great red dragon had come to visit and it would leave nothing in its wake.

 

* * *

 

 

Blue eyes stared in surprise at the oil lantern glowing softly in the dark room. It had taken him far longer than he had wanted to make the trip. He had worried that Shanks would be angry, or not want him to come back, but as soon as the clone had taken form and opened his eyes, he had spotted the glowing lantern waiting. There was no other reason for a lantern to have been left burning in the nearly empty storage room. He blinked and then grinned; time to get to work. He stepped to the side and immediately began studying the seal matrix on the floor. In moments he had brush, and ink in hand and began making adjustments and additions; the brush moving in quick steady movements

There was a rush of footfalls outside the door and the blonde-haired clone looked up in surprise from where he crouched just inside the hatch before it was thrown open. The clone went tumbling as the hatch connected with his backside. There was a soft popping sound and the clone was gone, brush and ink pot falling to the floor.

Shanks’ wide eyes froze and then a wail escaped his lips as he sunk to the floor, collapsing against the hatch door casing. His nephew had returned… he had sensed it tickling the edges of his haki, just as it always had before, and then it was gone again.  His gaze traveled downward to the seal matrix and he immediately spotted the small changes and additions. He had spent quite a bit of time studying the intricate marks in the past two months since his nephew’s last clone had been killed. The lines, swirls, and marks told him stories, and yet kept their secrets just out of understanding.  He worried, suddenly, briefly, that his nephew had been working to seal the way shut, but that didn’t feel right.

There was a sudden yellow flash, and power exploded across Shanks’ senses. He heard distant shouts of shock from other areas of the ship, and his eyes opened wide as blonde hair framing a familiar face with blue eyes and whisker marks came into focus before him. There was power in those eyes; power, strength, knowledge, mischief, and so much more but most of all longing and hope.

“Sorry it took me so long Shanks-oji. As my sensei would say, I got lost on the road of life.”

Shanks blinked, a grin slowly spreading across his face and then loud laughter filled the room and spilled into the corridor behind him. This was his nephew –no shadow— the real thing this time, and he wondered at how he ever could have doubted the potential the shadow clones had hinted at. The boy’s haki sang with power and strength and Shanks could only grin. He reached forward, and when the teen accepted his offered hand, he tugged the boy to him quickly, holding on tight.

“You had me worried, kid.” Shanks whispered despite his grin as he embraced the boy tightly, not having to worry about making this one vanish in a whoosh of displaced air.

Naruto could only return the embrace, a grin as large as his uncle’s stuck on his face.  



	13. Teddy-Bear

**Teddy-Bear**

_By Silver Dragonfly_

* * *

 

Red strands shifted to hang across brow and eye as the Captain of the Red-Haired Pirates leaned forward, staring intently at the blonde teen who sat across from him. The older man blinked and then grinned as his blue-eyed nephew eyed him warily.

“What…?” Naruto asked, his tone expressing he wasn’t sure he really wanted to know.

“It’s so warm!” Shanks cooed with his stupid grin. “Makes me just want to cuddle you!” He exclaimed cheerfully.

Naruto gave an exasperated sigh. “You are drunk.” He stated flatly to his uncle.

“Well, yes.” Shanks answered, not bothered in the least. “But I’d cuddle with you sober. Your haki….. It’s just so warm!” with that said, the red-haired man reached out and pulled his nephew over to him.

Naruto let out a startled yelp, too surprised to fight, as he found himself cuddled like a teddy bear. “Really?” He asked under his breath. “Aren’t you supposed to be a bad-ass pirate captain?”

“I am a bad-ass pirate captain.” Shanks responded while leaning his chin on his nephew’s shoulder and letting out a sigh. “I remember Kushina-nee holding me like this when I was little. It’s one of the clearest memories I have of her. And I remember her always being warm.”

Whatever argument Naruto was about to make was lost as he realized just what his uncle had said. “She…” he whispered suddenly, wanting to tell his uncle everything. “She died saving me.” He said quietly, and felt the arm wrapped around him tense. “There was a great creature sealed away that was released the night of my birth. She was already…”

“You don’t have—“

“No! I want to tell you.” Naruto interrupted Shanks before he could stop the story from spilling out. “The creature released was known as the Kyuubi, a nine-tailed demon fox. My father was the Hokage of Konoha, the leader of the village, and a hero from the Third Shinobi War. He managed to stop the one responsible for Kyuubi’s release, but the fox could not be killed. The Kyuubi is a creature of chakra: pure energy and emotion; it could only be sealed. Both of them… Mom and Dad… took fatal blows defending me from the fox as my father sealed it away again.” Naruto stopped there, his mind full of memories his parents had left him by sealing the last of their own chakra into the seal as well.

“They loved you a great deal.” Shanks said gently after Naruto was silent for several moments.

Naruto smiled. “Yeah, they did… do.”

He remained quiet for several more moments; letting Shanks hold him as if he was still a child that needed such things. He decided to share the rest. “My childhood sucked, and I was mostly alone growing up, but… my parents… they believed in me. They believed I would protect the village from the hatred of the fox. It took a long time, but Kurama, that’s his name, is my partner now and the village no longer hates me for being his jailor.”

Shanks blinked. “Wait, you mean…”

Naruto shrugged taking advantage of his uncle’s surprise as a chance to escape his teddy-bear hold.  “Yeah, the fox is sealed inside me.”

Shanks blinked. “Huh. Wonder if it’s anything like a Zoan Devil Fruit.” Then he grinned, a sparkle of mischief in his eye. “Can you transform? Do you get ears? How about a tail; wait, you said nine tails, so it would be nine tails for you too, right?”

Naruto stared at his uncle in shock but then felt laughter well up and break loose.

Shanks only grinned and took a drink from his waiting mug, happy to see the shadows chased away from his nephew’s expression.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shanks & Naruto doodle can also be found on my DeviantArt page. (<http://lillikira.deviantart.com/art/Teddy-Bear-464496427>)


	14. Ninja VS Pirate

** Ninja vs Pirate **

_By Silver Dragonfly_ _  
_

* * *

 

Naruto blinked and then eyed Yasopp skeptically. The older man had apparently declared himself Naruto’s tutor in all things sailing ever since the first impromptu lesson. (Shanks had threatened Yasopp with removal of his hair if he tried to tutor his nephew in piracy.) This had started with learning sailor knots; a practice that had gone fairly well considering Naruto’s clones had “only” managed to tie themselves into the knots about two thirds of the time, but Naruto was seriously beginning to think Yasopp might be trying to pull one over on him when it came to the sails.

“So let me get this straight; the foremast is on the forecastle and has the foresail mounted on it.” Naruto recited as he pointed to the mast closest to the bow.  “Then comes the main mast on the main deck with mainsail, main topsail, and main topgallant.” He continued as he then pointed at the central mast starting at where it met the deck and then moving upward as he named each sail. “Third, on the quarter deck is the mizzen mast, mizzen topsail, mizzen topgallant and mizzen royal.” Naruto finished carefully making sure he pointed to each of the last sails as he named them.

“That’s right.” Yasopp answered with a grin.

“But you expect me to believe this is the poop deck and this sail is called a spanker?” Naruto asked his voice filled with skepticism.

There were several snickers from nearby crewmen and Yasopp chuckled with them. “That’s right.”

Naruto looked down at the deck and carefully pulled his feet up beneath where he had rested on the railing so he perched on it in a crouch. “Why would you name part of your ship—“

Before the blonde could finish his statement, there was a snap and the afore mentioned spanker sail shifted and collided with the blonde which sent him flying off the railing.

Yasopp stared wide-eyed and quickly grabbed the line to secure the boom of the loose sail while calling out. “MAN OVERBOARD! SHANKS! NARUTO WENT OVERBOARD!”

“WHAT!?!”  Shanks shrieked.

The sound of rushing feet filled the air as the crew scurried to the ship’s aft and Yasopp finished securing the sail line to prevent the driver sail from hitting anyone else. Yasopp turned and found himself looking at a crowd of backs as the crew stared down behind the ship, frozen.

“Can you see him? Can he swim?!” Yasopp asked worried.

Shanks did not answer but just continued to stare down at the ocean and then reached back to pull Yasopp up beside him.

There on the ocean surface, several yards behind the ship, was the missing blonde teen running back towards the ship.

“Yasopp, I’m not drunk this morning, am I?” Yasopp wasn’t quite sure how to answer as he stared at the sight. In moments, the teen would catch up to the ship. Yasopp looked away and hollered, “Oi! Someone toss the kid a line!”

“Why?” Naruto asked from right behind the blonde-haired pirate.

Yasopp turned, “How…”

Shanks blinked, stunned. “He ran up the side of the ship. Just ran right up it. “

Naruto grinned, very amused.

Shanks poked the kid in the side. “He’s real. You haven’t eaten a devil fruit; how did you…?”

Naruto’s grin only got wider as he glanced between uncle and his supposed sailing tutor before answering. “Ninja.”  


* * *

 

Naruto stared at the island the Red Force had dropped anchor at with both curiosity and disbelief. His eyes scanned the snowcapped mountains and ice floating in the ocean all around the ship in large chunks. “This,” he paused and turned to face his uncle, his breath forming small clouds in the air before him, “is where you keep your treasure stash?”

Shanks grinned and handed his nephew a piece of parchment.  “Not the only stash, but one of my personal favorites. This is the map leading to the stash, care to lead the way?”

Naruto blinked and unrolled the piece of parchment, studying the map on it. “You just drew this today, didn’t you?” he asked noticing the hurried smudge marks covering the paper.

Shanks just grinned at him. “You wanted a bit of adventure, this island has more to offer than you may think.”

Naruto resigned himself to playing along with his uncle’s whims; it reminded him a bit of some of Kakashi’s supposed “training exercises” and D rank missions. Naruto watched as a long boat was lowered into the ocean and various crew began to descend down into it. “Right. Well, I’ll meet you on shore, then.”

With that said, the blonde hopped over the edge of the ship and in moments could be seen jogging across the ocean’s surface toward the shore line. Shanks watched him go and then turned to Benn who came up beside him. “Do you think he would teach me?”

Benn chuckled. “If he does, I’m sure the crew will enjoy watching you get soaked in the process.”

Shanks grumbled, but was smiling as they followed the others down to the waiting boat.

-:o:-

The map was simple in nature. As with most maps of land masses, it indicated the overall shape of the land, and within its borders outlined particular features of interest including mountains, rivers, forest, canyons, and what Naruto suspected were cave entrances in many different places. What made this a treasure map, however, was the pronounced black ‘X’ as well as the simple skull and crossbones used to indicate something dangerous. Naruto had half-expected the skull and crossbones to match Shank’s Jolly Roger, but this was the more classic marking and so he suspected it indicated something more.  Inked along the outside edges were directions and warnings. Traps, then. Well, there was nothing unusual about that for him. He glanced back at the approaching boat, grinned, waved, and set off.  He was sure the Red-Haired crew would catch up soon enough and he had a few ideas of his own for this little adventure.

Further inland, Naruto frowned as he studied the map and passed through a gap in the cliff side.  The map gave some warning about icy depths and eternal darkness, but all he could see around him as he exited the gap, was a sort of deep basin surrounded by cliffs and blanketed with ice and snow. If this island had been in a warmer climate, he imagined it would have held a lake, also indicated by what he thought was a frozen waterfall at the far end of the basin. He shrugged and set out across the ice-covered expanse towards the dark opening he could see on the other side, his sandals leaving faint imprints in the snow.

-:o:-

It was the startled yelp of one of the crew, and then the unmistakable sound of shattering ice, that alerted Shanks to the fact that something had gone “not quite right.” He rushed ahead and watched as two crewmates pulled a third from the brink of his death in the ice-filled ravine. The ravine itself was often covered in a thin layer of ice hiding the chasm filled with icy spears, and it was the first trap that the Red-Haired Captain had made use of when setting up the defenses for his favorite stash.

“Oi, you know this trail, why did you try to go out onto the ice?” Shanks asked frowning.

The crewmember sat sprawled on the edge and blinked, “Footprints. The kid’s tracks went right across the ice.”

“Are you certain?” Shanks demanded, looking out across the ravine and trying to spot some trace of tracks on the unbroken sections.

“I can see them, Captain.” Yasopp spoke, “They lead as if he went right across the middle.

Worried, Shanks turned quickly and headed into the dark shadows to the right, vanishing amongst them as he traveled the hidden pathway that lay there.

As he approached the far side of the basin, Shanks felt tension ease from his shoulders as he spotted his nephew’s tracks leaving the ice ravine and entering the first of many cave tunnels on the other side. He had not expected his nephew to go on ahead of them, he had thought they’d be together as they encountered the various traps and tricks that were the defense of any pirate’s treasure stash. From the moment he had heard that his nephew’s tracks went out across the ice the realization that his nephew could be seriously injured by one of those traps had his stomach in knots. He wondered if his nephew had even been aware of the danger he had been in, and this was no clone that would simply vanish to be replaced later. He set off into the tunnel once more when he sensed that the rest of the crew following him had cleared the ice ravine.

-:o:-

Naruto couldn’t keep the grin off his face as he finished setting the final wire of his current project. He let his eyes travel back across the wire toward the snow-covered pines and the waiting trap at its other end. He turned as he caught sight of movement out of the corner of his eye and then blinked as he noticed the strange small creature staring back at him. Both remained still for several moments, then long ears twitched and the furry form vanished over the cliff edge. Naruto quickly moved to peer over the edge himself, and watched as the furry creature slipped along narrow paths, leaping between them when they were not connected. He glanced back at his trap thoughtfully; maybe he would be able to watch when it was set off after all. It took only a moment with a quick gathering of chakra and another furred creature appeared. Long ears twitched between curving antlers as the creature blinked large eyes. One large foot moved to scratch the mottled fur on the back of its head before it then turned and settled itself amongst snow and rock, blending in with the landscape.

Naruto turned his attention to the map once more. It seemed like he’d be weaving in and out of a network of caves for a while. He quickly moved to the next cave opening and then turned to look back over the ground he had just covered. He glanced down at the snow, and with a careful application of some wind chakra, erased all evidence of his movements save for those leading from the previous cavern to the next one. He smirked and then continued on his way.

-:o:-

The sound of something snapping suddenly had the Red-Haired Pirates tense and glancing around. Benn’s eyes widened and he leapt forward just as several feet of snow came sliding down off the nearby pines and ledges to cover all those who had been behind him.

Shanks turned and blinked as he studied his half-buried crew. “Oi, what are you lot goofing around for?” He asked, amused.

Yasopp glared and a quickly made snowball flew at the redheaded Captain before he began digging himself out.

Shanks laughed as he dodged the snowball and moved toward the next cavern, waiting for his crew to pull themselves out of the snow before continuing.

Benn paused as he spotted something move and then eyed the small furry creature that sat watching them, ears and nose twitching. He narrowed his gaze, why had the jackalope not startled and run? As if sensing the attention the jackalope suddenly tensed and then disappeared over the cliff edge.

“Benn! Quit staring at nothing!” Shanks called out as he headed into the next cave. The Red-Haired Pirates’ First Mate grunted in response but moved to follow, as it seemed he wasn’t the only one who had noticed something slightly odd about the jackalope.

-:o:-

Naruto glared as he studied the skeleton propped up on a ledge, silently grinning at him. He glanced down at his map and then scratched his head. “When the skeleton drinks…what kind of direction is that?!”

He then looked up at the cave wall above the skeleton and the words etched onto the stone. “When the skull speaks…”

Naruto all but growled. “When the Hell does a skeleton drink or speak?!”

He studied the skeleton again, with its dead grin, and noted that the left arm was extended with a finger pointing. He followed the direction to see one of the tunnels clearly indicated. He glanced back at the skeleton noticing this time that the other hand held an empty rum bottle.

“Maybe I have to give him booze?” He mumbled to himself then shook his head in amusement. “Shanks-oji would drink with a skeleton.” With that decided, he unsealed a bottle of a clear liquid and carefully poured it into the empty rum bottle. As he did so, the hand holding the bottle lowered causing the extended arm to shift bit by bit. Once the skeleton’s bottle was filled, he traced the path the other hand pointed to, and a different tunnel was marked. Naruto grinned.

He took several steps then paused. He summoned two clones who grinned at his side then performed a henge. In moments both had joined the skeleton on his perch, bringing the number of waiting skeletons to three. That should unnerve some of the crew at least. With that task done he headed off down the indicated tunnel.

He had only traveled a few dozen steps down the path when there was a faint click and the ground dropped out from beneath him. Naruto yelped as he found himself suddenly sliding down. Sheer ice covered the stone surfaces leaving nothing for him grip. As his feet went out from under him, he completely lost control over his path while he slid down the tunnel.

“Damnit! That skeleton was lying!” he cursed as he tried to get a grip on the ice with his chakra and slow his slide.

-:o:-

Shanks giggled as he thanked the skeleton for the drink before emptying the bottle and giving a satisfied sigh afterwards. That had been some good stuff.

“Captain…” Benn said flatly.

Shanks inwardly grimaced. Benn had never liked the skeleton trap.

“Yes Benn?”

“There are three.”

Shanks blinked, there was indeed, three. It was at that moment that two of the skeleton’s turned to stare at him.

“Oi Redhead! Share the drink!” The left one demanded.

“Yeah! Not nice to just guzzle up another fellow’s booze.” The one to the right chimed in. The middle one chattered its teeth in what he could only assume was meant to be a skeleton’s chuckle.

Behind Shanks and Benn the crew screamed, yelped, and several shots rang out in the cavern.

Yasopp clobbered those who had fired as he muttered something about not wanting to be hit by friendly fire due to idiots.

Shanks chuckled, “It seems my nephew has an amusing sense of humor, wouldn’t you say, Benn?”

“Indeed.” Benn replied, and moments later, the two extra skeletons vanished in a familiar whoosh of displaced air.

Shanks considered this for a moment. “I wonder how many of those things he can make at once…”

“Captain! The ice chute trap has been tripped.” Shanks nodded, he had thought as much when the skeleton’s rum bottle had been full.

“At least it wasn’t the pit. We’d have to actually fish him out of that one.” Shanks stated. “I’m sure he can find his way out of the ice chute’s cave. Wasn’t that the one full of nice soft snow powder when we set this up? Well, time to keep heading onward, if the kid doesn’t turn up later on, we’ll come find him. Thanks again for the drink, Sam!” with a final wave at the now-lone skeleton, Shanks headed off down the tunnel that the empty rum bottle angled toward, his crew following quickly behind.

-:o:-

Naruto groaned as he dug in the snow under his back and pulled out the object that was poking him in the ribs and kidneys. He blinked as he stared at the object and then grimaced as he tossed the skull away. “That’s just nasty.” He muttered, though at least it hadn’t been human. He slowly pulled himself to his feet and studied the cavern that his crazy ride down a slide of pure ice had deposited him in. Like the tunnel he had slid down, the walls were covered with ice and it filled the space with a deep chill. From the ceiling, long icicles formed around stone stalactites stretching downward, some meeting midway to the ground with ice covered stalagmites.

The sound of scurrying paws caught his attention and he stood, quickly glancing around. “Oh it’s you again.” He stated when he spotted the familiar pair of antlers and long ears peeking up above a snowbank. Ears twitched at his voice but no other movement was made. “So, did you fall down Shanks-oji’s stupid ice slide too?” Naruto asked, not really surprised when all he got for response was another ear twitch.

Naruto sighed and continued to study his surroundings. It seemed the snow bank he’d landed in was the only reason he wasn’t more bruised from the ride. He frowned as he studied the walls, not spotting any openings or ways out. “Well I doubt Shanks-oji would leave me down here to freeze, so there should be a way out.” With that said, he began to take a closer look at the walls and then grinned when he found an opening hidden behind an outcropping of ice. “Here we go. Come on,” he said to the furry creature still silently watching him. “Let’s get out of here.”

Suddenly the small furry creature perked his ears, alert, and darted past Naruto in a blur. “Hey what’s the big idea?!” Naruto shouted after the small animal and then stilled as his voice echoed. As the sound of his reverberating voice began to fade away, there was another sound, like splintering ice. Naruto glanced backwards once more, his eyes opening wide. He quickly turned and took off after his furry friend while cursing under his breath. “Spiders! ICE Spiders! What the Hell is wrong with this place!”

He skidded to a stop as he met a dead end, the small furry creature resembling a rabbit with antlers crouched low and cowering against the ice wall. Naruto glanced back over his shoulder and spotted the swarm of what looked like a moving ice wave beginning to fill the passage behind them. He looked up and spotted an opening a few meters above him, hopefully he’d be able to actually stick this time. He scooped up the cowering creature and then ran up the wall, heading toward the waiting tunnel.

Naruto made good progress up the ice covered tunnel, this time managing to scale the walls of ice without losing his grip, unlike his unexpected downward ice-slide experience earlier. He glanced back as he heard the tinkling sounds of ice and groaned as the spiders similarly had no problem climbing upward. It was at that moment that his passenger squirmed and Naruto looked forward just in time to skid to a stop before flying over a cliff edge. He quickly scanned the suddenly open space and then edged along the narrow path to his right. This had to be how his furry friend had ended up down in the ice cavern to begin with.

He didn’t have long to consider this as within heartbeats the spiders began to spill out of the tunnel. He glanced around quickly and decided to take a page out of Sakura and Tsunade’s book.  He slammed his free hand back into the cliff side as hard as he could. At first, there was little result, and then snow began to rain, then pour down from above. Naruto looked upwards and winced. “Oops.”

He began running along the cliff side as quick as he could, trying to get out of range of the coming wave. The snow rushed forward in a rapid avalanche, sweeping to engulf the path before and after him. At the very moment he lost his footing and hung in the air, weightless before the fall, a large fur-covered shape appeared under him and his small passenger, jumped, and began to run UP the falling snow. Naruto blinked and then grinned widely, yelling in glee.

-:o:-

“CAPTAIN!”

Shanks glanced back over his shoulder to the owner of the voice and raised an eyebrow at the stunned-looking man. His jaw hung open and his hand pointed above them, his eyes wide. Shanks shifted his gaze to match and blinked as his own jaw dropped.

A flood of snow was hurtling down the mountainside toward them. Above the crest of the avalanche was a large rabbit-deer-like creature he had become familiar with while visiting this island. The creature was running up the avalanche and on its back was a familiar orange clad figure.

“Impressive.” Benn stated calmly, “Your nephew managed to befriend the jackalopes; looks like he’s having fun. Oh, and we should move if we don’t want to be buried in the snow.”

Shanks turned to Benn with teary eyes. “I want to ride the jackalopes too!”

Benn just sighed, and moved around his Captain to head into the next tunnel. “I refuse to dig you out if you get buried, Captain.”

That seemed to be enough to get the man and the rest of the crew hurriedly moving out of the way of the incoming wall of snow.

-:o:-

Naruto looked down from the cliff edge where his furry mount had stopped. He stared, eyes going wide as he took in the hidden valley spread out below. The fact that it was a hidden valley wasn’t what was most shocking, though, it was the greenery that overflowed from within and the warm air that drifted up to tease his hair. Naruto had to admit it; his uncle sure knew how to pick a hiding spot. This place was a treasure all on its own. To have such a hidden abundance of green and growing things on the frozen island, he had no doubt that the valley below held a collection of hot springs. Then something caught his attention as his gaze followed the cliff edges surrounding the valley. He frowned trying to figure out what it was, only to be distracted by the shifting creature beneath him.

“Ah! Sorry about that.” He apologized and quickly hopped off the large mottled creature’s back and then patted it on the shoulder. “Thanks for the ride back there.” The smaller rabbit-deer chattered at him from where it now sat, still perched on the larger one’s back. Naruto only grinned back at it. “Don’t worry about it. No one wants to become spider food, after all. Perhaps we can go for a ride again before I leave.”

The larger creature seemed to study him intently for a moment then nodded its head once before taking off down a narrow trail that descended into the valley. Naruto watched them go and then stared out across the valley again, his eyes widening in sudden realization. “No way…” He quickly pulled his map out and studied it before glancing back at the valley. His eyes traced the edges carved into the landscape  and then he quickly turned to the nearby large conifers that shared the plateau he stood on and climbed up. Once at the top he looked down with a better vantage point and grinned widely at the twin valleys that crossed each other. “X marks the spot, all right.”

-:o:-

“You think Naruto found the spot?” Yasopp asked, following behind Shanks and Benn as they exited a dark tunnel and entered the hidden valley.

“When we last saw him riding a jackalope?” Benn asked.

“Good point.” Yasopp answered. “No way he couldn’t end up here.”

Shanks chuckled ahead of them, then sighed and stretched as he stepped out into a large open clearing surrounded by green and growing things. “Ah it’s good to be here again.”

At that moment, a large jackalope standing on a small hilltop turned its head to face them. His majestic rack of antlers twisted and branching several feet above the top of his long ears.

“And look, the king-stag is here to greet us.” Shanks said with a casual grin.

“Didn’t you break one of his antlers the last time we were here?” Benn asked.

Shanks laughed nervously as they strolled out into the clearing and began making their way across it. “I’m sure he’s forgotten all about it.

The king of the jackalope herd bellowed and pawed the ground as everything stilled. Then there was a sound like thunder as the jackalope charged with dozens more appearing on either side of him in a rush.

Yasopp’s eyes went wide. “Oh Shit! Stampede!”

The Red-Haired Pirates began to run; shouted curses filled the air as they rushed for the tree line and the hot springs that were just beyond.

There was a rush of sound as bellows and the clattering of horns on wood filled the air. The pirates quickly slipped into the heavy forest line, which prevented the large jackalopes from following.  Shanks sighed as they all caught their breath and then slowly continued deeper into the trees and came out in a new clearing filled with pools of water and rising steam.

Naruto looked up from where he sat soaking in one of the nearby pools and smirked. “Took you long enough, Shanks-oji.”

Shanks approached his nephew without saying a word, and clobbered him as soon as he was within range. “Brat! You trying to give me a heart attack, running off ahead like that?!”

Naruto rubbed his head and grumbled. “You gave me a map!”

“Then why the hell did you go straight across that ice!” Shanks demanded.

Naruto blinked as he tried to recall the ice. “Oh… Come on, you think I can walk across water and not across a thin layer of ice?”

Shanks blinked and then pouted. “Stupid kid trying to give me gray hairs.”

Naruto only grinned as several of the Red-Haired Pirates chuckled behind them.

“Come on, kid, you can finish turning into a prune later.” Shanks admonished before turning to head toward the cliff wall behind the springs.

-:o:-

Naruto looked around the cavern Shanks had unsealed by way of a cleverly hidden sliding doorway with awe. There were easily hundreds of chests of various sizes and bags holding oddly shaped items filling the cavern. Gold coins lay scattered here and there, though most of it did seem to be kept contained within the chests, bags and other containers. “There’s so much…”

Shanks only grinned. “What did you expect? We are Pirates. Now, for the real treasure here,” with that, Shanks wound his way through the chests and shoved several aside before triggering another sliding door, this one flush with the ground. Moments after he had the new passage opened, he vanished inside of it. Naruto peered down curiously and blinked at the large cavernous space lined from wall to wall and floor to ceiling with barrels, jugs, and crates full of glass bottles. Shanks looked back up at Naruto with a sparkle in his eyes. “My favorite booze is all stashed here and we need to pick up a particular bottle before we head off to meet Whitebeard.”

“You would treasure booze more.” Naruto said with a shake of his head.

Shanks grinned and winked. “Pirate.”

Naruto glanced back over his shoulder at the piles of treasure stored in the space above, and then back down at the second room full of booze.  Yeah… he thought, Shanks-oji and Tsuande-baa-chan would get along just great.  


* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “The jackalope is a mythical animal of North American folklore (a so-called "fearsome critter") described as a jackrabbit with antelope horns or deer antlers and sometimes a pheasant's tail (and often hind legs). The word "jackalope" is a portmanteau of "jackrabbit" and "antelope".”


	15. Uzumaki Were Here

**Uzumaki Were Here**

By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

Blue eyes widened at the sight of all the sails bearing the blue gull mark that filled the waters ahead of the Red Force. He had never seen so many ships in one place before.

“So, we’re going right through them all?” Naruto asked as he continued to eye the sails.

Shanks grinned, “Straight on through.”

“Why are they trying to blockade you?” Naruto asked.

 “We are heading into Whitebeard’s territory and two Yonko meeting up always make the Marines very nervous. They try to discourage it.” Shanks said as he shrugged nonchalantly.

“Ah.” Naruto answered nodding in understanding. “So, why are we heading to Whitebeard, anyway?”

Shanks smirked, “I need to meet with the Old Man, and he refused the message I sent with Rockstar.” Shanks’ mind drifted back to the report of that refusal he had received. No, the old man had not only refused the letter, he had shredded it. Then he told Rockstar that Shanks could come himself if he wanted to talk… Oh; and of course, to bring booze and the kid. Whitebeard had always had a soft spot for family, and it didn’t surprise Shanks much that he’d taken an interest in the family relation Naruto’s bounty poster had revealed. It had been over twenty years since he’d last seen the Whitebeard Pirates in person; it would be good to see the Old Man.

Naruto suddenly grinned, “Hey Shanks-oji, can I help take out the Marine ships? I can take out… hmm… three or four, I bet, before we even get in cannon range. More if they stay all clumped up like that group on the port side, there. I’ve wanted to test Sage Mode here, anyways.”

Shanks raised an eyebrow. “You better back that bluff up, kid.”

Naruto just smirked. “You’ll like this.” He turned and scampered up to the forecastle and then the figurehead before finding a perch and settling down into a meditative position. Being still, while on an object in motion was going to be a bit of a trick, but already he could feel the air around him was saturated with nature energy. It was almost like being back with the toads; the energy came easily. His awareness expanded and he could feel the chakra of his uncle behind him. It was a different feeling, colored by other energies intermingled with it. Similar energies seemed to flow in and around quite a few of the other crewmembers whose chakra seemed to be civilian level at best.

Shanks shrugged when Benn arched an eyebrow at him in inquiry. There was still a good bit of time before they would be in what he considered range of the marine fleet. Shanks focused his haki on his nephew and then blinked in surprise. There was something going on with the energy around the kid, and whatever it was doing was making him very hard to sense. The boy was there, visible and unmoving, but, to his haki senses, it was like he was suddenly not there.

“That should do it.” Naruto stated as Shanks approached behind him.  Shanks gaped as Naruto turned to look at him; his normally blue irises had turned golden and his pupils, instead of round, were horizontal and rectangular, like a toad’s. A dark orange color had filled in the space between his eyes and eyebrows extending just past the outside edges of both. “Watch carefully.” Naruto stated as a clone suddenly appeared standing on the rail just behind the teen. Naruto held out his hand and focused, his clone using its own hand to help mold what Shanks could only assume was the energy called chakra in the original’s palm.

Soon a loud shrieking sound began to fill the air and members of the Red-Haired pirates began to groan and cover their ears. Naruto just grinned, though, and turned his focus to the approaching marine fleet.  Shanks watched intently as the glowing white sphere of what almost looked like condensed air appeared in the boy’s palm, looking barely contained. Spinning blades of light and wind formed and the shrieking noise rose to a new pitch. Then the kid threw it.

“RASENSHURIKEN!” The teen shouted and the ball of condensed energy and whirling blades surged forward across the ocean sending water streaming out of its path as it flew and expanded.

Shanks’ eyes widened and his mouth opened in shock as the sphere reached the ships. There was a roar of screaming: wind, wood, metal, and men as the sphere connected, expanded, and then exploded. Water surged into the air and waves rolled. Ships that had not been in the direct line of fire, or clipped in the explosion, rocked wildly until one capsized, spilling marines into the ocean. Of the ship that had been the primary target of the attack, there was only some debris and a faint red tinge to the sea and air. The debris itself could have even come from the ships that had been nearby, as there was nowhere near enough of it to account for the ship that was now, in fact, completely gone.

Naruto stared at the damage verifying the attack had been successful, and nodded, grimacing slightly. “That might have been a bit of overkill… but, well, there’s no way to make that attack non-lethal anyways.  I had figured it would shred the ship... never used it on a group of people like that before though.” He turned back to his uncle, taking in the still wide-eyed expression. “I have enough nature energy gathered for two more shots, but I’d rather not make it a complete massacre. The first one kind of got the meaning across, don’t you think?”

Shanks took a deep breath and met the strange yellow-eyed gaze of his nephew. “No, a massacre is not needed here. That is quite the attack, kid.”

Naruto grinned and scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, it’s the completed form of an attack my dad first created. It’s not something just anyone can use though, that’s for sure, and even I can’t use it safely outside of Sage Mode.”

Shanks scoffed. “Doing that without a Devil’s Fruit ability, you really are unpredictable aren’t you?”

Naruto laughed. “’Konoha’s Number One Most Surprising Ninja,’ that’s what Kakashi-sensei always called me.”

Shanks chuckled, and then turned to his crew. He would probe his nephew for more details about this Sage Mode and nature energy later. “All right, boys, we can’t let Naruto here do all the work for us. Let’s remind these marines that we are pirates and free to sail wherever we damn well please!” Shanks’ call shook the pirates out of their shock, and there were varied shouts of agreement and glee from all around as the Red Force finally came into cannon range.

In moments, the air was full of the sound of cannon fire, screaming marines, and shouting pirates.  No sooner had the Red-Haired Pirates sunken one ship than another closed in to take its place. The entire marine fleet that had been acting as a barrier between the unofficially declared territories of the Yonko not even a full hour before was reduced to broken timber, shredded sailcloth, and frantic marines. It was only as the Red Force moved out of cannon range, past the sinking marine ships that Shanks realized someone was missing.

“Oi, where is Naruto?” He called out, frowning. He knew the kid had been fighting with them and had seen him doing very well on his own at several points throughout the battle. He stretched out with his senses, hoping whatever nature energy the kid had gathered earlier would not block him from sensing him. He cursed as he found the unique warm energy of his nephew somewhere behind them and rushed to the aft of the ship looking back towards the cluster of destroyed marine vessels.

Shanks stared hard at the bits of ships, then blinked and began to chuckle, which soon shifted into full-out laughter. Every sail left hanging from a yard had been vandalized. Huge red circles with a dark spiral marked inside covered them all. He knew that mark. Knew it from long forgotten memories and echoes of time long past.

The sound of a blade slicing through the air caught Shanks’ attention, and just as it passed within a foot of him there was a yellow flash catching it out of the air and Naruto landed lightly on the deck and turned, grinning at his uncle.

“Uzumaki was here?” Shanks asked, bemused.

Naruto grinned. “Uzumaki were here.” Naruto agreed.  
  



	16. What’s a Sage?

**What’s a Sage?**

By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

Shanks nodded in satisfaction as he overlooked the various tasks being carried out on the Red Force. They had a good wind in their sails and the course was currently set by an Eternal Pose. Until they received contact from Whitebeard, they would continue on this path. He glanced back at Naruto, who had been shadowing him ever since their battle with the Marine fleet. Now was as a good a time as any, he supposed, to find out just what it was Naruto had done to hide from his Observation Haki.

“Come on, kid, let’s leave them to it and have a chat.” Shanks said as he headed toward the large red and white umbrella that shaded a comfortable lounging area on the main deck.

Shanks let out a sigh of content as he settled into his favorite chair and smirked at his nephew who sat down and made himself comfortable on the deck in front of him.

“What did you want to talk about?” Naruto asked, curious and a little wary.

Shanks narrowed his eyes at the blonde teen as he studied him. “What have you learned about haki in this world?”

“Haki? Is that something you eat?” Naruto asked puzzled.

Shanks chuckled, once again reminded of the similarities between Luffy and his nephew. “No, it’s not something you can eat. Haki is… how to put it: the manifestation of one’s will on one’s self and surroundings. Yeah, that sounds about right.”

Naruto blinked. “Huh?”

Shanks scratched his head and frowned. He’d never been very good at this type of thing. “Well, you’ve heard of Devil Fruits, right?”

The blonde nodded.

“Well the Logia class of Devil Fruit, as well as some of the Paramecia ones, makes their users virtually immune to various types of damage. Take Luffy for example, his Paramecia Devil Fruit makes him a rubber man. Blunt damage literally does nothing to him, but he can still be cut. Similarly, an old acquaintance of mine from when I was on Roger’s crew has a Fruit that makes him immune to any sort of cutting damage. The Logia ones, however, literally become their element. Punches, cutting strikes, and even bullets will pass right through their bodies without causing damage; save for maybe distracting them for the time it takes them to reform. Makes fighting them a bit tricky if you don’t know those facts, right?”

Naruto nodded, intrigued.

“Haki generally comes in two different common forms. Armament Haki is like a shield made by the strength of your will and spirit that surrounds your body either in part or whole. This shield of haki will then reinforce your body making it much, much harder to inflict damage on. Likewise, this shield, when used offensively, will allow a fighter to bypass the natural defenses of Devil Fruit users. Using haki is the only reliable way of defeating a Logia Devil Fruit user.” Shanks explained.

Naruto blinked and frowned as he considered what he had been told. “I can do something kind of like that already with chakra. A lot of shinobi do, actually. Using chakra to reinforce and enhance our own bodies and weapons.”

Shanks raised an eyebrow, seemed there were more parallels between this chakra and haki than he had first suspected. “Interesting, we’ll have to test your chakra enhancements against Armament Haki some time.”

Naruto grinned, “Sounds fun.”

Shanks chuckled at his enthusiasm. “The second common form is Observation Haki and is much less obvious. I think a demonstration might be best. Let’s see… OI BENN!”  Shanks called out.

Benn approached the railing of the quarterdeck and looked down at the pair. “Yes, Captain?”

“Help me give Naruto a demonstration of haki.”

Benn exhaled a long breath of smoke. “Standard training exercise?”

“Ah, that will do nicely.” Shanks replied.

The silver-haired man descended to join them on the main deck while pulling a long piece of dark fabric out from his jacket and proceeding to tie it around his own eyes. He then stopped in front of Shanks with his back to the red-haired man. Shanks grinned and winked at Naruto as he stood and pulled out a long staff that had been tucked away behind his chair. “Now watch.” Shanks instructed. With that said he began to swing quickly and unpredictably at his first mate’s head.

Naruto watched with widening eyes as Benn shifted his head in various directions. The movements were precise and calculated, there was no wasted energy as the older man moved just enough to dodge each strike and then returned to a full upright position. This continued for several minutes.

“How…” Naruto asked with wide eyes. If he hadn’t known better, he would have thought Benn was using Sage Mode. Naruto recognized those type of movements from what he could do while in Sage Mode, himself.

“Observation Haki,” Shanks replied. “It allows you to read your opponent’s attacks before they happen, and if you have the training, gives you time to react accordingly.” There was a sudden loud THWAK, as the pole connected with the side of the first mate’s head and Benn cursed loudly.

Shanks grinned. “Now, if Benn hadn’t used Armament Haki to protect himself, I probably would have killed him.”

“But he was sensing all your attacks…” Naruto said a bit confused.

“He was, but I also have Observation Haki, and was able to read his dodge and respond accordingly. The stronger your haki, the more you can overpower other haki users as well. Intimidation can play a factor too.” By the time Shanks had finished speaking, Benn had removed his blindfold and revealed the darkened skin along the side of head where the pole had connected. “And that is what Armament Haki looks like. Thanks, Benn.”

The silver-haired man rose gracefully to his feet with a grumble and a swipe at Shanks’ head with his ever-present rifle. Shanks merely laughed as he dodged the attack. “There are some that refer to Observation Haki as Mantra, and it is often described as hearing the voices of those around you.” Benn added, before moving to return up to the quarter deck.

Naruto’s eyes went wider at that. “Sage Mode is kind of like that! Except it’s not a voice… but… well, almost a color and feeling. I can sense the chakra of everything around me for miles if I focus while using Sage Mode.”

Shanks made an interested hum as he considered his nephew’s words. “Sage Mode, that is what you used with that Rasen…shuriken attack, is that right?”

Naruto nodded as he grinned.

“So what is Sage Mode, exactly?” Shanks asked as he settled into his chair once more.

Naruto almost bounced in his excitement. “Sage Mode is what it’s called when someone is using nature chakra. The toads taught me how, which makes me the current Toad Sage of Mount Myouboku.”

Shanks blinked. “Nature chakra?”

Naruto nodded. “Yeah! It is chakra from all of nature around us and is really potent. If you don’t know how to channel and balance it properly it can turn you into a stone toad! Fukasaku-jiji kept hitting me with this stick while I was training to learn how to balance it to keep me from turning into a stone statue, but it still turns my eyes all funny.”

Shanks eyes widened in realization. “You mean the toad eyes and orange eye-shadow?”

Naruto nodded. “I’m pretty good at it, though. Fukasaku-jiji said it was a near-perfect transformation. Ero-Sennin would get a huge nose and warts when he used it, along with the eyes and markings.”

Shanks scratched his head at the new names being thrown at him. “And who is Fukasaku-jiji and … Ero-Sennin?”

Naruto smiled softly. “Ero-Sennin was my godfather, Jiraiya, the Toad Sage before me, and my sensei. Fukasaku-jiji and Shima-baa-chan are the eldest toads beside the Great Toad Sage and are the ones who taught me how to use Sage Mode.”

“Huh.” Shanks said, somewhat surprised. Apparently, the Toad Clan was more established than he could have guessed from his previous meetings with Gamatsukai. He hadn’t missed the fact that his nephew had referred to his godfather in past tense, however. Did the kid have anyone he could claim as family before coming to find Shanks himself? He let the thought go for now. “Interesting; your Sage Mode has some added effects here, I believe. When you used it earlier you vanished completely to my Observation Haki. I was standing right next to you, but if I had been blind I never would have detected you.”

Naruto blinked, then after several long moments of thought he whooped and grinned. “All right! Super stealth mode!”

Shanks guffawed.

Up on the quarterdeck Yasopp leaned against the rail beside Benn and cast a wary gaze toward the umbrella area of the main deck. “Hearing them like that… makes me a bit nervous.”

Benn chuckled. “As long as the kid doesn’t teach Shanks this ‘super stealth mode’ of his.”

Yasopp considered the possibility and a chill ran up his spine. “Yeah… we don’t really need those prank wars to start up again…”

Before any further comment could be made, there was a flash of blue fire and a bird’s call filled the air. Benn and Yasopp turned to face the large blue flaming bird that now perched on the ship’s railing. The bird stretched one talon-tipped foot forward and dropped a small package on the deck, its intelligent gaze meeting that of Benn’s before it gave a nod and then shot skyward again.

“Damn cocky blue chicken.” Benn muttered before going to pick up the package and then called down to his captain. “Captain! Special Bluebird delivery!”  



	17. The Fox and the Blue-bird

The Fox and the Blue-bird

_By Silver Dragonfly_

* * *

 

 

Shanks settled his sword more comfortably on his hip before grasping the carry rope attached to a very large bottle of sake.  "Ready, Naruto?"

 

The blonde teen turned away from his conversation with Benn and nodded with a grin.

 

Shanks looked from nephew to first mate and back again. "Is there something I should be worried about?"

 

Benn quirked an eyebrow but remained silent.

 

Shanks suppressed the chill he felt whenever he knew Benn was planning something.  He would have to be careful around his first mate for a few days. "Right... Okay, then. Naruto, I'm about to do something cool, so pay attention. "

 

Naruto nodded and followed his uncle as they made their way to the gangplank that now connected the Red Force with the much larger Moby Dick.

 

"Oh, and don't faint."

 

“What do you mean—“

 

“We’re receiving Red-Haired!” an unfamiliar voice called out cutting Naruto’s question off.

 

At that moment Naruto sensed it; an incredibly potent aura that spoke of strength, power, and more. _Wow…_ he thought as he followed his uncle and began to see the affect it had on others around him. His uncle’s comment about not fainting suddenly made sense. Naruto grinned as he grew accustomed to the feeling, despite its adverse effect on those around them. He really needed to get his uncle somewhere where they could have a good spar, but that would come later. He took note of the various pirates watching them as they crossed the deck of the other Yonko’s ship and finally came to a stop across from a huge man with a large white mustache.

 

“Sorry about the intimidation, this is an enemy ship after all.” Shanks offered in an amused tone. The large man chuckled.

 

“Seeing your face again, makes the old injury from Him ache.” The man known as Whitebeard responded his voice deep and rumbling.

 

“Good thing I’ve brought some healing water, then.” Shanks responded with a grin as he offered the large bottle he had been carrying.

 

“Oi! Red-Hair! Look at the mess you’ve caused!” A voice called out from the nearby group of pirates. Unlike many of the others, none of this group had collapsed.

 

Shanks faced the blonde-haired man and smiled, “Oh, Marco is it? How about you come join my crew?”

 

“SHUT UP!” The blonde man snarled back.

 

Naruto snickered as his uncle chuckled.

 

“So, this is the kid?” Whitebeard asked, his gaze settling on the blonde-haired teen standing a step behind Shanks and to his left.

 

“Are you some kind of giant!?” Naruto asked excitedly, this guy was even bigger than A and Bee.

 

Silence fell across the deck as Shanks smirked.

 

Whitebeard laughed. “I like you, kid. How would you like to become one of my sons?”

 

“WHAT!?!” Shanks shrieked, his jaw dropping and several more of the surrounding whitebeard pirates fell unconscious. Shanks looked from his still grinning nephew to the older Yonko and frowned. “Whitebeard…” Shanks nearly growled.

 

Naruto rested a hand on Shanks shoulder, a small smirk on his lips. “Sorry, Jiji, I think Shanks-oji might have a heart attack, and then Benn would complain endlessly about me not taking care of my uncle and how much work it was going to cost him.”

 

Whitebeard grinned. Shanks grumbled, but it was apparent that Naruto’s answer had relaxed the redhead a bit.

 

“Captain, should we?” One of the crewmembers in the group that stood behind the man identified as Marco spoke up.

 

“Ah, seems there will not be a fight today. Leave us alone to talk. And Marco, take the kid with you.” Whitebeard responded.

 

“Hey! My name is Uzumaki Naruto! Not ‘kid’.” Naruto defended himself, glaring at the much older Yonko. Blue eyes met the steady gaze of the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates, without flinching as the deck went silent once more. Several long moments passed before both older Pirate and blonde teen grinned. Naruto patted his uncle’s shoulder once more and gave his uncle a nod to indicate he would be fine. Shanks nodded in understanding and watched his nephew move off to join the group of Whitebeard pirates.

 

“Cheeky Brat you found there, Red-Hair.” Whitebeard said, amused.

 

Shanks continued to watch his nephew move away with the commanders, a soft smile on his face. “I didn’t find him. He found me.” He replied and then turned his attention back to his fellow Yonko. Both Captains’ eyes met in a steady gaze as the impact of what finding family meant passed understood between them.

 

.o.

 

Naruto followed the blonde pirate and the group of others as they all began to move toward the forecastle; leaving the main deck of the large Moby Dick to the two meeting captains.

 

“So is it really true that you flew to the Red Force as a big blue chicken to give Benn the log pose we used to find you guys?” Naruto asked as the group began to settle down on the foredeck. The entire group froze for several moments. The older pirate, who Naruto had spoken to, stood rigid with his back to him as several snickers were suddenly heard from the surrounding group. The man with strange spikey blonde hair only growing on the crown of his head turned and glared.

 

“I’m a Phoenix-Zoan, yoi. Not a chicken.” The man stated slowly, clearly annunciating each word. “Che, Brat.”

 

Naruto grinned. “Is it true that you are made of fire?”

 

Marco twitched and glared at the blonde teen again. “Red-Hair put you up to this?”

 

“Put me up to what?” Naruto asked looking puzzled. Behind them, there were was full laughter breaking out.

 

Marco turned to his crewmates and growled at them to shut up.

 

“So, are you?” Naruto then asked again.

 

Marco sighed. “Yes, yoi.”

 

“Can you show me?”

  
Marco stared at the blonde. “You act like you’ve never seen someone with a Devil’s Fruit before?”

 

“I haven’t.” Naruto replied. “Is it true that you can’t swim, you just sink?”

 

“I suppose you’d like a demonstration of that too, yoi?” Marco replied.

 

“Would you!?” Naruto asked excited. Marco groaned and his crewmates began to snicker again.

 

“Careful, kid, or he might toss you in for a swim.” One of the others said, amused.

 

Naruto blinked and then frowned. “Why would he do that?”

 

“Good grief, he really is related to Red-Hair…” someone said in shock from the back.

 

Marco glared at his crewmates but then decided he’d better answer the kid’s questions before the young blonde came up with some other idea. “No, I will not go for a swim just so you can be entertained.” And before the kid could say another word, there was a whoosh of blue flame as the majestic form of the phoenix took over the space on the railing where the Whitebeard Pirates First Division Commander had stood moments before.

 

Naruto’s eyes lit up in glee and he hopped forward reaching out to touch.

 

The phoenix’s eyes opened wide and he pushed back with spread wings to hover just as the boy’s hand came near touching him.

 

The Whitebeard Commanders then stared in shock as the boy kept going over the rail and down toward the ocean.

 

“Shit.” One of them cursed stirring them all into motion as they rushed forward to look down.

 

“What the hell!” exclaimed another.

 

“Oi!” Naruto shouted from below. “That wasn’t nice!” He admonished as he proceeded to jog across the water from where he had landed and then up the side of the Moby Dick.

 

“How?!” “What in the world…” “Did he eat a Devil Fruit?!”

 

Naruto only chuckled as he finished jogging up the final bit and then leapt upwards.  There was an indignant squawk as he passed near the still hovering Marco and then landed nimbly on an empty section of nearby railing.

 

Naruto stared at the feather that still flickered as he ran it between his fingers, his eyes wide. “Wow…” he whispered as he studied the plumage carefully.

 

There was a flurry of wings and then the feather in his fingers vanished as the blonde commander stood before him once more. “That wasn’t very nice, Brat.” Marco said coldly.

 

Naruto looked up and chuckled nervously. “Ah… um…”

 

At that moment there was a reverberation of the clash of steel and the clouds above rolled.

 

“Gotta go!” Naruto said hastily and vanished in a yellow flash.

 

“Shit, if he gets killed…” one of the commanders said stepping forward.

 

“Relax,” Marco said, eyes narrowing in thought. “Red-hair isn’t about to start a war. And the kid is smarter than he lets on.” Then he chuckled, “Too bad Shanks would do more than just go to war if Oyaji tried to kidnap the kid.”

 

There were several other amused grins and chuckles at that.

 

.o.

 

Naruto reappeared in a golden flash behind his uncle, his gaze focused on the enormous man who was as known Whitebeard. The man’s gaze shifted slightly from the Red-Haired Pirate’s Captain and their crossed blades to the teen and then he seemed to take a deep sigh, a smile tugging at the edge of his lips.

 

“I think you’ve overstayed your welcome, Brat.” Whitebeard said focusing on the Red-Haired Captain. He withdrew his pole arm slowly and stood up straight. “Worry about your own.” He added as his gaze shifted fully to the blue-eyed teen.

 

Naruto gave a feral grin. “Don’t’ say that, you’ll make him turn gray if he worries so much.”

 

Whitebeard chuckled. “You are welcome aboard the Moby Dick, Kid; seek us out if you ever get tired of this Brat.”

 

Shanks frowned as he glanced between his nephew and the old pirate. Just what was his nephew up to?

 

Naruto smiled, “Thanks, Jiji. Tell Marco I said goodbye!”

 

Whitebeard chuckled .

 

“Come on, kid, let’s head back before Benn worries himself bald.” Shanks said, deciding he could question his nephew on his antics later on.

 

It wasn’t until the Red Force had cleared cannon fire range that Shanks realized something back at Whitebeard’s ship was tickling the edge of his senses. He turned to his nephew, “Naruto, did you leave a clone…”

 

There was a load birdlike screech that echoed across the ocean from the Moby Dick.

 

Naruto grinned widely as he turned to Benn. “Mission Accomplished.”

 

Benn grinned around his cigarette. “Good job, kid.”

 

Shanks looked between the two several times and then edged over to stand by Yasopp and whined. “Yasopp, Benn is corrupting my nephew—“

 

Naruto turned to his uncle, “You say that like you haven’t already tried!”

 

Shanks blinked at that then chuckled and shrugged. “So what was this mission?”

 

Naruto smirked, his blue eyes twinkling. “Oh, Marco’s hair just matches the color of his flames now.”

 

Shanks’ laughter started out small and soon filled the ship and drifted back toward the Moby Dick where a fuming commander glared at the departing ship, his crewmates snickering behind him.

 

It was sometime later that Yasopp managed to pull Naruto aside. “Well?” Yasopp asked anxiously.

  
Naruto grinned widely, “They do stay on fire.”

 

Yasopp’s mouth spread into a wide grin of his own and he almost bounced in excitement. “And?”

 

Naruto patted the older man on the shoulder, “It vanished as soon as he changed back from the phoenix form.”

 

Yasopp’s grin vanished and his shoulders drooped. “Bummer, I really wanted to use some for arrow fletching.”


	18. Legacy

**Legacy**

_By Silver Dragonfly  
_

* * *

Naruto watched his uncle stare out at the ocean as the Red Force sailed onward. It had been several hours since they had sailed away from the Moby Dick and twilight had begun to turn the sky dusky rose and violet. Of those hours, Shanks had spent most of them by himself, staring out at the waves as they passed beside the ship, or further out at the endless horizon. Naruto finally sighed and approached his uncle, tired of the considering glances he kept seeing the other crewmen give his uncle and then himself.

“You are sad about something.” Naruto said quietly as he leaned against the railing beside his uncle.

Nothing was said and Naruto began to worry that maybe his uncle wouldn’t talk to him. Then, the older man spoke. “A bit; worried perhaps is more accurate. And I find myself remembering the past.”

Naruto fidgeted, but then decided he might as well ask the question he had wanted to ask ever since he had eavesdropped on his uncle’s conversation with Whitebeard. “Shanks-oji, who is Ace?”

The redhead let out a sigh, he had been expecting this question, but then a smirk tugged at his lips. “I first heard about Portagas D. Ace when he was a rising supernova in the Paradise half of the Grand Line. At first, he was known as the Ace of Spades, Captain of the Spade Pirates. Wasn’t too much later that he got a new alias, Fire Fist Ace. He had eaten the Mera Mera no mi, Logia class, the kid was literally fire. It wasn’t either of his aliases that drew my attention to him, however, but his name. Portagas. I had known it from my time sailing with Roger, and there was something about the look of the boy, but I couldn’t be sure, so I kept an eye on his progress.” Shanks fell silent for a bit, then, as if considering his next words carefully. Naruto waited, sensing that if he interrupted now he would miss something important.

“It wasn’t too long before he entered the New World, and even turned down the position of Shichibukai, I heard. Then, one night in the middle of a snow storm on a winter island, he and his crew arrived in our camp.”

Naruto’s eyes opened wide. He had heard many stories from other crewmembers about rookie pirates who would try to challenge the Yonko foolishly.

“I knew who he really was the instant I saw him in person, but I said nothing about it and merely asked if he wanted to challenge me.” At this Shanks chuckled, “The cocky kid, he laughed and then bowed and properly introduced himself. ‘My name is Portagas D. Ace’, he told me, and then said ‘I just wanted to meet the man that saved my little brother in person and thank you properly.’”

“Little brother?” Naruto queried unable to keep the question silent. Shanks smirked.

“Not by blood, they had not met yet when I had saved the kid.” Shanks explained.

Naruto considered for a moment then his eyes widened. “Luffy? The kid you left your old hat with?”

Shanks grinned, “That’s right. We had a good party that night. Shared all sorts of booze and stories about his brother and the trouble he would get into.”

Naruto smiled, but then frowned after a moment, “There’s more to this isn’t there?”

Shanks nodded. “Ace told me that night that he wanted to go after Whitebeard’s head. I knew then it was because he was the son of Roger, my old Captain, but unless Ace himself mentioned his father, I would not. The identity of his father had made him a wanted man before he was even born, and I would not bring that manhunt down on him if he did not choose it. He deserved the right to live free of his father’s shadow. If I had thought he would join my crew, I would have offered, but I could see the fire burning in him for his own dream.”

Naruto smiled sadly at that.

“It was several months later that I heard Whitebeard had taken him underwing; the nerve of that old man, claiming his rival’s son as his own. I met Ace once more after that, and asked him if he enjoyed being with Whitebeard. The kid had smiled, and all but glowed as he talked about Whitebeard and his crewmates. I knew then, that Ace had found something with Whitebeard he hadn’t even known he was looking for.”

Naruto sniffled and Shanks smirked at him and ruffled his hair. “Ah, getting all sappy on me now, are we?”

“Shut up.” Naruto grumbled but didn’t move away. “You keep mentioning your old captain, and it sounds like he was someone important, but no one has told me who he really was.”

Shanks blinked, a bit surprised, and then chuckled. “Gol D. Roger, known by most of the world as simply Gold Roger, the Pirate King.”

Naruto’s eyes opened wide, “Your old captain was the King of Pirates? How can Pirates have a King?”

Shanks laughed. “Good question! It wasn’t a title he chose for himself. Captain Roger loved freedom more than anything. He claimed it for himself, his crew and conquered all the Grand Line. This of course put him at odds with the Marines, and pretty much every other Pirate crew out there.  It was Roger that helped me find my own dreams. You would have liked him, and I think the Captain would have liked you too.” Shanks said, his smile softening in memory. “I’ll have to introduce you to others who were part of the Roger pirates when we run into them. Maybe even send you to visit Rayleigh, the Roger Pirates’ First Mate, sometime.”

Naruto couldn’t keep the grin from his face. “What happened to him? How did you end up starting your own crew?”

Shanks smile faded and sadness filled his gaze as he turned to the ocean once more. “It was part of what drove Roger so hard there at the end to sail all the Grand Line. The Captain… he had a terminal illness and our doctor could do nothing but treat the symptoms, so Roger sought his dream and sailed to the very end of the Grand Line. He disbanded the crew soon after, and as his illness got worse, he chose to turn himself into the Marines. Decided he’d rather go out in style then die sick in a bed.” Shanks smirked. “I think he had it all planned out, though.  The Marines made a grand spectacle of his execution: he was the Pirate King after all, and it was his last words that changed the world. Someone from the crowd called out to Roger, asking what he did with all his treasure. The Captain, with his big grin, told them he left it all at the end of the Grand Line for the world to find. With those final words, he was executed, the smile still on his face.”

Naruto blinked his eyes wide as he imagined the scene then snickered. “He really pulled one over on the Marines didn’t he?”

Shanks grinned back. “The Pirate King’s legacy was to launch the world into a whole New Age of Piracy, and inspire a whole new generation of Pirates.”

“I bet he liked pranks.” Naruto said.

Shanks blinked, and then laughed. “Oh yeah, he would have definitely liked you.”

Naruto grinned.

“Anyways, life went on, and I formed the Red-Haired Pirates.  It wasn’t until recently that I began to feel uneasy about something big coming. Mihawk sent word that he had heard of a man calling himself Blackbeard causing havoc in Paradise. More so, that this man was rumored to actually be a former Whitebeard pirate by the name of Marshall D. Teach.  Now, most pirate crews will lose members from time to time, as betrayal is part of the whole package as far as most are concerned, but for this to have happened with a Whitebeard Pirate is unheard of. Teach was no rookie on that crew either, he had been with Whitebeard since before Roger died. The entire setup just stinks of Teach being up to something big. The rumors I’d heard of Ace also roaming Paradise alone then made sense: he was hunting Blackbeard.”

Naruto frowned, “What’s wrong with that?”

Shanks sighed and turned toward Naruto. “Teach, is the one responsible for this scar.” He said, pointing toward the marks that crossed his left eye. “I have known there was something odd about Teach for a long time, but he kept quiet under Whitebeard’s flag. As strong as Ace has become, Teach has been hiding his own strength for a very long time. I do not want to see something happen to Ace over a quest of revenge. That is why we met with Whitebeard. Something big is coming on these seas. I’m not sure what it is… but ever since I learned of Teach’s betrayal and Ace traveling separate from Whitebeard; I’ve sensed something building. You’ve mentioned a war back home; I don’t want to needlessly drag you into another one here.”

Naruto flinched at the word revenge and looked down, studying his hands. “One of my first teammates; a kid I had known at the academy… He was… my first true friend… my brother…” Naruto whispered the last, his voice trailing off as Shanks now studied him. “His family was massacred when we were only seven. By the time we had graduated from the academy and become teammates, he had already set himself down the path of vengeance. He threw everything else away for it: our village, our friends, our team… he nearly killed me for it. Revenge is a dark and terrible thing…”

Shanks smiled sadly and reached his arm out to pull his nephew in for a hug. “Revenge is unfortunately a word that all who fly the jolly roger of a pirate are familiar with. There is always someone who was wronged by a pirate and so blames all others for it. Pirates almost live and breathe vengeance and revenge on a daily basis. I think it is what twists so many men into little more than monsters.”

Naruto stiffened at his side.

Shanks squeezed the teen’s shoulder in reassurance. “I swore a long time ago to never lose myself in a quest for revenge. For myself, I will never seek vengeance for petty insult, but nor will I ever let nakama be hurt without making those guilty answer for it.”

Naruto looked up not sure if he liked his uncle’s statement or not.

Shanks smiled sadly before speaking once more. “I will not abandon my nakama for the sake of revenge.”

Naruto felt relief wash through him and he returned his uncle’s smile with one of his own. “Never abandon nakama.”


	19. Broken Dreams

** Broken Dreams **

_By Silver Dragonfly_

Shanks stared at the now-empty space where his nephew had disappeared in a golden flash. Something had not been right. He glanced to his left, where Benn stood by the hatch of the store room. “You saw it?”

Benn nodded.

“There was something he didn’t want to face at home, something that hurt him deeply.” Shanks stated seriously as he turned his gaze back to the empty space. “Just what was he hiding all this time?” He wondered. His nephew had spent a month with them since his first true arrival, and not once had Shanks picked up any indication that there had been something seriously wrong back in the boy’s own world. He sighed. No choice now but to wait; Naruto had said he shouldn’t be gone for more than a week.

“Come on, Benn. Let’s find an island with a good bar on it. I need a good drink.”

The silvery haired man only shifted his weight and then followed his captain, taking a moment to close the hatch behind him.

 

* * *

 

 

Naruto let out a long breath as he opened his eyes and the familiar view of his apartment in Konoha came into focus. He was back, and there was no more running. His mind drifted briefly to his last return to the village. He had just completed a long diplomatic mission to all the other hidden villages and was looking forward to completing his report to Tsunade-Baa-chan and then going to see his uncle. His report with Tsunade had not gone as he had expected, though.

.:o:.

_“Baa-chan, I’m back!” Naruto called out as he entered the Hokage’s office._

_“GAKI!” Tsunade had yelled back, but then sighed and simply motioned for him to sit down.  “I’ve gotten messages back from all the villages you visited. You did very well, Naruto. Jiraiya would be proud of you, as would your parents.”_

_Naruto smiled sheepishly but was pleased with the praise. “I wasn’t sure it would work, but it was better than letting them start fights over which villages I was associated with.” He answered._

_Tsunade smiled, “I doubt they would have been so quick to try and enlist you if they knew how much paperwork you cause.”_

_Naruto only chuckled._

_Then Tsunade sighed, her mood turning somber. “Naruto…” She began her voice hesitant. “I’m going to resign in just over a month’s time.”_

_Naruto’s eyes opened wide. “But…”_

_Tsunade silenced him with a look. “The war took a lot out of me and I can’t keep up with all I need to do. I’m needed in the Hospital more than as the Hokage and I do not have the strength left for both. Naruto… I won’t be naming you my successor… in fact,” and at this there were tears in her eyes. “No one will ever be able to name you as Hokage.”_

_Naruto froze, his eyes wide in shock, his body going rigid._

_“You pulled off miracles in the war, and even more with this mission of yours.” She continued; pain at having to tell him this apparent in her voice and posture. “Unfortunately, the deals you made to solidify the alliance: becoming an honorary member of ‘every’ Hidden Village, there is no possible way for you to ever be the leader of just one. Doing so would unravel the alliance faster than you could imagine.”_

_“I need to go.” Naruto said as he stood and then used his father’s signature Hiraishin jutsu for the first time in front of Tsunade as he vanished from her sight._

_Naruto had arrived back in his apartment and immediately set to work on sending a clone through to the world where his uncle lived. He had finished all his tests while traveling and finalized the seal design to allow him to make the jump himself. Modifications had to be made to the anchor seals on both sides before he could make the jump. He summoned several clones who immediately set to work. One began to modify the anchor seal here; the other began the process to create a sealed Bunshin. He sat down and wrote a message.  A little over a month, that was all the time he would take. He would have to come back when she resigned and the next Hokage took over, even if it killed him inside to see it happen. He left the message lying on his kitchen table along with the sealed Kage Bunshin, they could reach him that way if something happened, but for now, he needed an escape._

.:o:.

Naruto looked at his kitchen table, the letter was gone, but the sealed Bunshin scroll remained. He wondered if Tsunade had requested it be left here.

He sensed the familiar chakara just as the voice of his sensei reached his ears. “I’m glad you came back. I wasn’t sure you would.” Kakashi said softly, as he perched in the now open window. “I’m sorry, Naruto.”

Naruto smiled sadly, “It’s you?” He asked, but not really needing the confirmation.

Kakashi shrugged. “Paperwork is going to be a drag.”

Naruto couldn’t help but chuckle at that.

“Your father would be so proud of you, you know that? Using his jutsu to cross worlds… you really are ‘the number one most surprising shinobi of Konoha’.” Kakashi said softly, warmth in his tone.

Naruto smiled at his sensei, “Thanks.”

Kakashi smiled in return, “Oh, and a word of warning, Sakura is rather upset with you leaving like you did.”

Naruto winced and groaned.

“How about some Ichiraku’s?” Kakashi suggested.

Naruto’s eyes lit up immediately, then he paused as memories of another teacher filled his mind. The war had taken so much from everyone…from him. He took a deep breath, steadying himself, and then smiled at the silver-haired man. “Your treat… Hokage-sama?”

Kakashi groaned and Naruto snickered, but then he nodded and they were off.

.:o:.

When Kakashi had warned him that Sakura was upset, he had expected getting punched in the face. He had expected to maybe even need to use Kurama’s chakra to heal the damage. He had not expected this.

“Naruto, you idiot.” Sakura choked out around tears as she buried her face in his jacket, her arms wrapped almost painfully tight around his chest. “Tsunade said you used your father’s jutsu and just vanished. Did you have any idea how much I would worry?! How much everyone would worry?!” She scolded and hugged him tighter. Naruto winced.

“Too tight—Sakura.” He wheezed out. Sakura just held him tighter for several long moments before loosening her grip and then taking a step back and wiping away stray tears.

Naruto took several careful breaths as he took note of the quickly fading pain in his side. He was pretty sure she had bruised, if not broken, a rib.

Sakura sniffed and then glared at him. “You could have at least sent a message back telling us you had made it there safely! You take such risks without thinking of the consequences!” She admonished, anger edging her tone, her fists now clenching.

“We…” and then she turned away unable to voice the rest of her thoughts.

“What she means to say, is we really didn’t know if you would even want to come back.” Shikamaru said as he settled down on an open stool next to the pair.

Naruto frowned and then sighed, hanging his head. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to worry everyone.”

The others seemed to relax a bit and soon it was as if he had never left as stories were traded and ramen eaten.

.:o:.

“Boss…” a small strained voice reached Naruto’s ears.

The blonde teen turned away from the view of the village spread out below. He studied the brown-haired genin for a moment and then smiled softly. “Hey, Konohamaru.”

The genin hesitated only a moment more before he launched forward and wrapped his arms tightly around the elder teen.

“Hey now! Take it easy, you’ll knock us both over the edge.” Naruto chastised but wrapped an arm around the smaller boy. The younger shinobi held on, keeping his face buried in the older one’s jacket. Muffled words drifted up, and Naruto smiled, amused. “You know I can’t understand what you’re saying, like that.”

Watery brown eyes peered up at him as Konohamaru loosened his hold and pulled back a little bit. “It’s not fair!”

Naruto sighed and pulled the younger teen over so he sat next to him, their feet dangling down over the spikes of stone that represented the Fourth Hokage’s hair. “What do you see Konohamaru?” he asked softly.

The genin sniffled. “The village.”

Naruto smirked. “And?”

Konohamaru sighed. “The people of the village.”

Naruto nodded. “Sarutobi-jiji took me up here, once. Told me he could see all his precious people from here. That all Hokage could.” He sat silent, then, for several moments. “I can’t see all my precious people from here.”

Konohamaru frowned. “But Naruto-niisan, your dream! Our dream! You said I had to surpass you!”

Naruto winced. “You’re right, and I did say that… but, I can’t see them all. They are in Konoha, and Mist. They are in Suna, Lightning and even Rock. If I can’t look over all my precious people, how can I be Hokage?”

 “It’s still not fair.” Konohamaru sniffled.

Naruto smiled sadly. “We’re shinobi; fair doesn’t apply to us.”

They sat silently together for a long time, and the sun began to set before Naruto spoke again. “You’ll do it for both of us.”

Konohamaru looked up at Naruto with wide eyes. “Naruto-niisan…”

 “What, you can’t do it?” Naruto asked, smirking.

Konohamaru growled and punched the blonde in the shoulder. “Of course I can!” he shouted.

Naruto laughed. “Good.”

Konohamaru settled down again, his face turning serious. “You are going away again.”

Naruto flinched. It had been a statement, not a question. “I found my mother’s brother… my uncle.” Naruto said softly.

Konohamaru’s eyes went wide, but then he sniffled. “But… aren’t we family?”

Naruto turned to the boy, surprised, and then sniffled himself. “Of course!” He said quickly, “But…” He then turned to look out over the village again. “You’ll look after them for me, right?”

Konohamaru snorted, like any of Naruto’s friends and adoptive family would let him, but he would try. After all, they were all part of the village and therefore his precious people too. “As if a future Hokage could do anything else!” he finally declared.

Naruto chuckled.

Konohamaru’s expression turned worried once more. “You’re coming back… right?”

Naruto blinked, surprised. “Idiot! Of course I’m coming back!” but then he turned melancholy again. “I… I just need some time: it hurts to remember so much. And Benn needs all the help he can get looking after Shanks-oji.”

Konohamaru studied the older teen’s face for several long moments, but finally seemed satisfied as he then proceeded to launch into stories of his latest missions with Moegi and Udon.

.:o:.

Naruto couldn’t stop the small smile that raised the corners of his mouth as he approached his sensei and stood beside him. The man would be late to his own funeral, but they could spend a few moments more, at least.  Naruto stepped forward and crouched down beside the memorial stone and ran his finger along the edge of all the newest names; so many had been lost in the war.

_Hyuuga Neji, Maito Gai…_  Lee had been devastated for days before throwing his grief into training. He had seen Kakashi running laps on his hands more than once since the war as well.

_Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inochi_ …  Their son and daughter were now the heads of their clans.

_Akimichi Choji…_ Shikamaru and Ino still seemed out of balance without the third member of their group.

_Akamaru_ … Kiba was almost always quiet and reserved these days.

_Umino Iruka_ … Tears threatened to fall as his vision began to blur.

_Hyuga Hinata…_   They had never really had a chance… he had never been able to tell her what she had done for him.

Naruto swallowed the lump in his throat, took a deep breath, and slowly let it out. He then rose to his feet and backed up to stand beside Kakashi.

“Being late to your inauguration… what kind of Hokage will they think they’ve chosen?” Naruto asked, quiet amusement in his tone.

Kakashi only continued to stare at the stone.

“Come on, Sensei, its already two hours. They sent me to find you after 30 minutes; I took my time finding you.”

Kakashi blinked and then turned to face his student. “Only for you, Naruto.” He finally answered after several moments, and then smiled mischievously. “Shall we make an entrance?”

Naruto smirked. “If you are going to arrive late, might as well arrive in style.” Naruto agreed. With that said, Naruto rested a hand on Kakashi’s arm and they both vanished in a yellow flash of light.

.:o:.

“If there is going to be some war, why are you getting involved?” Sakura asked, her displeasure about the situation clear in her tone.

“He’s not a teammate, but… Shanks-oji is nakama.” Naruto paused in his packing, his gaze distance as he tried to explain.  “If… if something happened to him and I wasn’t there…”

Sakura almost flinched at his words; she knew what the war had done to Naruto. She knew, and yet, she understood that despite all that, he would not… no, could not withhold his help from someone he had claimed as family. “You will be careful, right?” Sakura asked as she watched Naruto seal crates of instant ramen into scrolls.

“Of course.” Naruto responded without even turning.

Sakura fidgeted. “You’ll come back if you get injured so I can treat you?”

Naruto paused and raised an eyebrow at that. “Sakura…”

She huffed. “I know you don’t need it most of the time, but still.”

Naruto smiled and walked over to her to pull his pink-haired teammate into a hug. “I’ll come back and let you fuss over me if I get injured. I promise.”

“You’ll bring your uncle to visit?” Sakura then asked; she wanted to meet this supposed family member. Naruto was her family; she couldn’t just let him be taken in by anyone.

“When I can,” Naruto agreed. “He is the Captain of his ship after all, and looks after a bunch of islands.”

Sakura sat back, and Naruto handed her a familiar tri-pronged kunai. She looked at it in surprise. “I’ve given one to Kakashi-sensei and Tsunade-Baa-chan as well. The seal has been modified. If you swipe blood on the seal on the handle and add chakara, I’ll sense it even when I’m there.”

Sakura’s eyes widened as she ran her fingers over the handle and the seal work that covered it. “Naruto… this is…”

Naruto grinned, then paused. “Take care of Tsunade-Baa-chan.”

Sakura scoffed. “Of course I will.” She sighed. “I worry about her; she hides it well, but…”

Naruto rested his hand on the kunai she held. “If you need me, just call.”

Sakura nodded. “Anything you want me to tell the others?” She asked as she watched him tuck the rest of his supply scrolls into his pack.

Naruto paused for a moment, “I… I don’t know.”

Sakura nodded.  “We’ll miss you, all of us.”

Naruto smiled, “I’ll miss you too, Sakura.”

He stood up, settled the pack, and moved to stand on the intricate seal that filled a good portion of his living room floor. With a cheeky grin he vanished in a bright gold flash.

Sakura blinked away tears and looked around the empty apartment before heading out the front door and locking it behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To those who are familiar and up to date with Naruto cannon events:
> 
> As with all crossover stories there are things that are bent/borrowed and ignored. Do not assume all aspects of the 4th Great Shinobi war and all events after it from Naruto cannon are still cannon with this story. Some elements will be kept true, some will be bent to fit, and others will be disregarded completely. Thank you!


	20. Growing Dreams

**Growing Dreams**

By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

He had made sure he had a smile on his face as he left Sakura behind, but he could not find the energy or reason to keep it when he could no longer see his pink-haired teammate. Shifting shadows greeted him as the softly glowing lantern swung gently from side to side with the motion of the ship. Naruto slowly sunk to the floor and slouched over, his eyes falling to rest on the floor before him.

“ _My name is Uzumaki Naruto and I’m going to be Hokage!”_ He flinched as the memory flared and flickered away. “ _I never go back on my word!”_ He groaned, and slumped over sideways against a nearby barrel. “ _I won’t give up!”_  Eyes closed tightly as tears began to gather. It was gone. It was all gone, and there was no battle he could fight to bring it back. There was no enemy to defeat, no challenge to overcome. It was just gone...

He barely even noticed as the storage room hatch was opened and the boisterous voices of the crew filtered into the room. He didn’t turn to see who had opened the door and entered the room. Did not even raise his head as a warm body stood over him for several long moments before settling down against the barrel and leaning casually against his own back. Naruto’s heart clenched painfully at what his uncle must think of him like this, but as tears slipped down his face, somehow he just couldn’t bring himself to care enough to move.

For quite some time nothing was said.

“The day that Captain Roger disbanded the Roger pirates,” Shanks voice began softly, “I wasn’t sure if I could ever really sail on the Grand Line again. How could I, with my family torn apart and scattered? For a while I was even angry at him for choosing to do that to us, my dreams suddenly ripped away.”

Naruto flinched at the word dreams, but fisted his hands tightly and squeezed his eyes closed tighter as more tears slipped their way free.

“I nearly got myself killed a hundred times in the following year. I had become reckless, and had almost no care for my own life, but I decided to make the journey to Loguetown when the Captain’s execution was announced. Despite what the disbanding of the crew had done, I could not stand the thought of not seeing him at least that last time.  It was the Captain’s final words, and watching how they affected everyone there, that brought me back to life. It was at that moment that I decided I would gather my own crew and continue on to find my dreams myself.”

Naruto continued to not move, though tears till dribbled down his face and sniffles could be heard every few moments.

Shanks turned his head slightly to study the back of his nephew’s head and felt tears threaten to spill from his own eyes. His nephew was so broken. He began to speak again, keeping his voice soft and gentle.  “Since then, I have seen many men with broken dreams, and of those, nearly all of them have died in sad and lonely lives. Some, however, find the courage and the strength to move on, to let their dreams evolve and grow and not limit it to what it was before.”

Naruto stiffened at these last words, his bleary blue eyes sliding open slowly.

“You worked so hard to find me, Naruto…” Shanks said softly. “That is not the sign of a man who just gives up.”

Naruto winced, but sat up a little straighter and then turned so his side pressed up against his uncle’s side rather than his back. He looked upward and waited for the tears to stop slipping down his cheeks before he spoke, his hoarse voice barely above a whisper. “For nearly all my life, that I can remember, I have dreamed of becoming Hokage of Konohagakure; of becoming the leader and greatest of the village’s shinobi and to wear that old man’s hat. I didn’t even know what it really meant when I first decided. I just watched how all the villagers treated Sarutobi-jiji and I wanted that. I wanted to be noticed, to be loved, to be acknowledged.  Even though I didn’t know why they all hated me, and called me demon; I wanted them to see me and acknowledge that I was there. To recognize that I existed, and that I could not be ignored. It was later on, sometime between my last year or so at the academy and becoming a genin, that I started to understand it meant something so much more.” He stopped there and said no more for several moments.

Shanks smiled softly and waited.

“True strength is found when protecting something precious. The Hokage’s strength wasn’t just his own, it was what he gained from fighting to protect the village. I had thought I’d understood that strength after Sarutobi-jiji gave his life fighting for the village. I thought I understood it when I fought against Nagato when the village was already half destroyed, but then when I found out who my father was; I learned it all over again. Then came the war…so much was lost… but we were so close to real peace. My efforts in the war made me well-known and popular in all the hidden villages, not just my home. They all began to deem me an honorary member of each village. This helped solidify the alliances and treaties. It was not until it was all done with that I learned the price. No shinobi who was a member of two let alone more than five different villages could ever lead just one. Becoming Hokage… is out of my reach… forever.” he finally finished, his voice flat and tin sounding.

Shanks fought the wince he felt at the sheer pain and loss he could hear in the blonde teen’s voice.  He considered his words carefully before giving them voice. “Dreams… are not meant to be rigid and unyielding. Nor are we limited to just one. It would be quite boring if we were; after all, what do you dream of once you have achieved that dream if that’s as far as you ever let yourself go? Perhaps…” He paused here, not quite sure how his nephew would react. “It is time to let your dream grow into something more?”

Naruto blinked slowly and turned to meet his uncle’s gaze. “I don’t want to… I mean, there isn’t anything above the Hidden Village Kages.”

At this Shanks smiled, “Ah, but what was it that you said being Hokage really meant?”

Naruto seemed confused for a moment and then his eyes widened, the deep blue lightening in color, before suddenly darkening again. “But… I failed so many. There were so many that died in the war. That died trying to protect me…”

Shanks’ expression turned serious and he nodded in understanding. “War is a terrible thing. I have seen many, living my life as I have here. So many people have these huge dreams of winning glory and honor in a war, but in truth everyone loses. It is impossible for any one person to protect everyone around them from everything, especially in a war. I have lost and buried more nakama over the years then I ever would have imagined when I first set out to sea. To gain friends, family, and people precious to us, and then… at some point further on in life, lose them. That is the nature of things. You can only cherish what time you have and do your best.”

Naruto sniffled. “Shanks-oji… I…”

Shanks smiled and chuckled. “Don’t worry kid. I don’t plan on being lost again for quite some time. No, I have a job to do after all. This bratty kid of my sister’s needs looking after and help with letting his dreams grow, after all.”

Naruto grinned and then wrapped his arms tightly around his uncle causing the older man to wheeze slightly as he laughed.

Shanks could barely hear the muffled thanks. He reached up to ruffle the blonde hair pressed against his chest and smiled. “Anytime kid. Anytime.”  



	21. Jan Ken Haki

**Jan Ken Haki**

_By Silver Dragonfly_   
  


* * *

 

With a loud clatter of metal, Naruto dropped the heavy bundle he had been carrying onto the ground where his uncle had indicated, and stared at him with a frown. “Why exactly do we need all this?” He asked, hoping his uncle wasn’t playing a prank on him after making him carry it from the ship. He looked up at their surroundings, taking note of the mostly barren terrain.  The beach itself had fine sand and would have been quite the find, if it wasn’t for the rocky and bare cliffs that stretched upward only a few dozen feet in. Atop the rocky crest, there was nothing but a few scraggly plants and bushes. Oh, and it was hot.

Shanks smirked, “Experimentation.”

Naruto frowned. “If you think I’m going to make you Kage Bunshin to test all those on…”

Shanks laughed.  “Maybe some other time; remember our discussion about haki?”

Naruto blinked and then his face lit up, “Oh you mean that stuff you showed me with Benn!”

Shanks nodded, his amusement plain. “That’s right. I thought we should test the strengths of it against your chakra abilities now rather than in a battle. These,” he said gesturing to the bundle of swords, maces, and other various types of weaponry, “are extra pieces we have picked up. No one will miss them if they become damaged or destroyed.”

“You want to destroy them?” Naruto asked surprised.

“No, I want you to try to do so.” Shanks then explained.

Naruto scoffed. “You don’t think I can?” he challenged.

Shanks lips turned up in a smirk. “Why don’t you prove me wrong?”

Naruto’s eyes sparkled. “You’re on.”

It took only an instant for the ringing clash of metal on metal to fill the air.

“Good!” Shanks said in glee as he held a sword pressed hard against the kunai Naruto had blocked it with, their eyes meeting steadily. “Now, you said you could enhance those little blades of yours with chakra, do so.”

Both pulled back and in moments rushed forward again; the sound of steel meeting steel ringing out once more before there was a snap and Shanks ducked sideways, dodging the kunai that flashed through where his head had been moments before. “Excellent!” he shouted as he dropped the now-broken sword and picked up the next weapon, the new blade shifting from the silvery gray of steel to a deep black tone, light bouncing off the metal.

“Again!” Shanks cried out and lunged forward once more. Naruto sprung back out of the way with a muttered curse as he dodged several more strikes before raising his infused kunai to block once more. He yelped and fumbled as his kunai fell to pieces and he nearly lost several of his fingers.

“Very interesting.” Shanks stated in a considering tone.

Naruto glared at his uncle. “What the hell was that?! You could have warned me!”

Shanks scoffed, “Where would the fun in that be? You reacted well enough; it seems your chakra enhancements are not enough to match armament haki, though I suspect they may do a bit of damage to a logia user caught unawares.”

Naruto grumbled and pulled out a new kunai. “Fine.”

This time it was Shanks who let out a yelp as his nephew took the offensive and he dodged out of the way just as several strands of red fluttered to the ground.

Shanks narrowed his eyes, “Oh, that was not nice…”

Naruto grinned cheekily, “and what are you going to do about it?”

The sound of steel on steel met once more. It took several blows, before the blade once attached to the hilt in Shank’s grip fell to the ground in several pieces, sheared clean though. “Very nice; what did you do differently?” Shanks asked as he studied the clean breaks while keeping a wary eye on his unpredictable nephew.

“Wind Chakra. It extends, sharpens, and strengths any weapon it’s channeled into. I can use it without a weapon to back it as well. Wind chakra is what makes a regular Rasengan into a Rasenshuriken as well.” Naruto offered in explanation as he watched his uncle study the damage before pulling a new blade from the pile.

“Rasengan?”

Naruto smiled brightly and held out his hand, palm up. It took only moments for the blue sphere of whirling energy to appear.

Shanks eyed the sphere, leaning closer and studying the rotating energy with interest. “Very shiny, what does it do, exactly?”

Naruto smirked then took off at a run toward the nearest cliff wall, shoving the whirling ball into the cliff face. There was a loud grinding and a crunch before Naruto backed away, studying the cliff face. He nodded before stepping aside to let his uncle inspect the new scar carved into the stone.

Shanks stepped forward and hummed in appreciation as he studied the marks cut into the stone. It appeared the whirling sphere had somehow carved deep spiral gouges into the cliff face. “This was the normal form of this skill?” He asked.

“Right, as I mentioned before, I can only use Rasenshuriken in sage mode safely. If I try to use it otherwise… well, Sakura-chan said she’d rip my arms off for me and save me the trouble of self-mutilation if I didn’t promise to never try it again, after the last time I used it.”

Shanks blinked. “Sakura-chan?”

Naruto smiled softly, “She’s a medic nin, and my teammate. We graduated from the academy together and were placed on the same genin team.”

Shanks raised an eyebrow in inquiry and then smirked. “Girlfriend?”

Naruto stiffened and then paled. “Never. Ever. Suggest that to her. Ever.” He shuddered and glanced up at the cliff face. “She’d drop this entire cliff side on your head for it.”

Shanks chuckled. “Sounds like quite the woman.”

Naruto narrowed his gaze at his uncle. “Oi, what are you saying?!”

Shanks guffawed and waved his hand dismissively. “Nothing, nothing. So back to this wind chakra; it seems like it was able to cut through armament haki, but it took several precise strikes to do so.”

Naruto nodded, “That sounds right.”

Shanks studied the hilt of the most recently broken blade once more. “This was a relatively cheap blade, even with armament haki, it can only be reinforced so much. I don’t think the wind chakra would be enough to seriously damage anything of real quality that is also infused with armament haki. As for a physical body shielded by armament haki, that would really depend on your opponent’s strength of will.”

Naruto shrugged, he’d figure it out if it came to a fight, he usually did, after all.

“Now,” Shanks continued, “About this nature chakra, how does that affect your combat abilities exactly?”

Naruto hummed in thought, “I’m not really good at explaining this sort of stuff, easier to show you, I think.  I should practice gathering nature chakra here as well; it’s different compared to home. More wild, more potent, and the world here itself seems to be more heavily saturated with it.” With that said, he settled down onto the sand lotus style and closed his eyes.

Shanks blinked; well, this looked slightly problematic for use in a fight.

“You need charge-up time?” Shanks asked

Naruto did not answer for several long moments as the skin above his eyes slowly darkened to a deep orange. When he opened his eyes, Shanks found himself once more staring into the golden irises and black bar-like pupils.

“The balance of nature energy and my own has to be perfect. It is also impossible to gather nature energy while in motion.”

“How can you use this in a fight, then? Taking time to gather the energy leaves you completely vulnerable.” Shanks stated frowning.

Naruto gave him a foxlike grin. “I have my ways.” With that said, two more Narutos appeared flanking the original and then took off up the cliff edge before vanishing above it. “Ready for that demonstration?”

Shanks watched the two clones vanish, and wondered again just how many his nephew could create. He returned to the pile of random weaponry and picked up a new sword. “All right, kid, show me what you got.”

No sooner had the redhead spoke than the blonde vanished and the sound of steel on steel filled the air.

Shanks laughed brightly as his feet slid back in the sand creating furrows after several clashes. “Not bad, not bad at all!”

Naruto only grinned as a new clone appeared at his side and he raised one hand up in the air.

Shanks eyes widened as the air above his hand filled with swirling blue which then grew. The pirate cursed and leapt to the side as his nephew moved and his voice called out:

“Odama Rasengan!”

Sand flew and filled the air blocking all sight.

.:o:.

The Red Force shifted as the waves rocked unsteadily, the water itself reacting to the vibrations and shockwaves coming from the dueling pair on the shoreline.

“They’re going to destroy the beach…” one of the crewmen who stood along the rail, of the Red Force facing the island, said in shock.

“Shit… the kid is actually giving Captain a workout!” another one said, dumbfounded.

Benn exhaled, allowing wisps of smoke to slip past his lips, as he kept his gaze focused on the shoreline.  “Yasopp, what are the clones doing?” He finally asked.

The sniper shifted his gaze slightly from the shore itself to the cliff edges and hummed in thought. “They look like they are just sitting there… meditating.”

“Ah!” another crew member shouted. “I can sense the kid again!”

“He must have run out of that weird energy he gathered.” Another said. “Wait, he’s gone again!”

“So that’s what the clones are for.” Yasopp said and sniggered, “Clever rascal.”

Benn chuckled. “He’s using the clones to gather energy, then dismisses one when he needs a recharge?”

“That’s what it looks like.” Yasopp agreed. “Oh, looks like the captain has caught on.”

No sooner had the blonde sniper spoke than a huge section of the cliff crumbled and began to slide down; taking the clone that had been perched at the top with it.

“The kid is throwing another one of those big blue bomb things,” Rockstar called out, “wait, no, there are two of them! The clone is using one, too!”

Sand and rock filled the air once more, obscuring all in sight.

Benn smirked, “Seems the kid has run out, now things should really get interesting.”

.:o:.

Mihawk nearly growled as the island came into sight. He had not been here in ages, and why the Hell would Akagami choose this island to visit? There was nothing there but barren rock, no supplies of any use. He highly doubted Shanks had chosen it as a place to build a stash; much too boring for the Redheaded Pirate’s taste. No, the last time he had found Akagami here… ah yes, that was after he had first returned to the Grand Line and New World after losing his left arm; when Mihawk had refused to duel him ever again. The memory soured his mood even further.

He resigned himself to being annoyed as he spotted the Red-Haired Pirates’ ship anchored off shore of one of the more hospitable beaches. He frowned as he considered what he sensed. It seemed almost all the crew was still aboard the ship… although there was some sort of scuffle happening on the shore. Had some idiot chosen to challenge Akagami here? And yet, there was no sign of any other ships nearby.

He angled his skiff to come in alongside the Red Force and secured his own smaller ship to it. He climbed up onto the other ship, and with his lips stretched tight in a frown approached the First Mate. He was surprised that the gray-haired pirate had not turned to greet him. Benn was usually much more cautious, but both the First Mate and all other members of the Red-Haired crew were staring intently at the shoreline.

Mihawk stopped beside Beckman and looked towards the shore as well. His eyes widened and he inhaled sharply as what he was sensing began to match up with what he was seeing. He could sense the Red-Haired Captain, but he was lost under a sea of orange, black, and blonde moving bodies and wisps of what almost looked like smoke. “That is not…”

Beckman chuckled as he lit another cigarette without taking his eyes off the shore. “Captain has been running his nephew through his paces, checking his limits. The kid is a stamina freak and I don’t think Shanks has had this much fun since you refused to duel him.”

Mihawk’s gaze narrowed and his muscles all tensed.

“It’s not a Devil’s Fruit, by the way.” Beckman offered, bemused.

Yasopp snickered as the Shichibukai vanished from their side. “Now you’ve done it. Captain won’t be so happy about his fun being interrupted.”

Benn snorted. “As if I would worry about his dislike of sharing when it comes to dealing with Hawkeyes.”

Chuckles from several other crewmembers around them were the only answer.

.:o:.

Shanks chuckled as he weaved between blobs of blonde and orange, and then side stepped several more before raising his sword to slice through an entire set of them at once. The squawks of indignation that came from several of the still living only amused him further. The best part of it all, they were coordinating with each other in ways he had never seen any group of fighters manage. The closest to it were tight knit pirate crews that had been sailing together for years. Perhaps Benn, Yasopp, himself, and maybe two or three of the other oldest members of his crew could manage it, but even that he doubted.

The way the clones of his nephew coordinated, played off each other, and supported one another was something else entirely. Shanks had little doubt now that this, more than anything else, was truly his nephew’s signature move and strongest skill. The sheer number of the clones he could create was nearly unfathomable. He had mocked the blonde teen when he had run out of his special nature chakra and lost the edge it had been giving him. The teen had only laughed and given another foxlike grin before answering.

“You know what else I’ve been called besides ‘Konoha’s Number One Most Surprising Shinobi’?” The teen had asked, eyes twinkling. “A ‘One Man Army’.”

Shanks had stared, eyes wide and mouth hanging open at what happened next. The kid had gotten several very good hits in as Shanks struggled to recover, for not only were his eyes overwhelmed by the sea of orange, but just as the kid’s sage mode had all-but rendered observation haki pointless, so did the swarm of clones. The tickling sensation he had always attributed to his nephew’s clones until now, was in fact a burning itch and thousands of tiny prickling needles all at once as he tried to take in all the different spikes of intent at once. He had thought at first it would be like facing hundreds of marines at once, and in some ways it was, but at the same time completely not. They all resonated at the same frequency, the same voice in his head, and the sheer number of them all muttering and mumbled together making any single one all but impossible to pick out.

This was the true strength of the clones, despite their lack of durability. What did it matter if they only lasted for one or maybe two good hits, if they were lucky, when there were always at least half a dozen more ready to fill the space left by the one dispersed.

Shanks wasn’t even sure how long they had been keeping this activity up, as he had long ago lost count of the number of clones he had “killed”. He wondered idly for a moment if he was going to have nightmares about murdering his nephew after this.

It was at that moment that his observation haki alerted him to something new and he leapt backwards with a curse.

“Watch it with that oversized cheese-cutter of yours, Hawkeyes!” Shanks shouted at his long-time friend and rival. The raven-haired man was paying him no heed, however, as he instead focused on the now unmoving swarm of clones.

“How is this possible?” Hawkeyes finally spoke as his gaze continued to track across the identical copies.

Shanks snickered in glee; he hadn’t had anything to hold over Mihawk now in ages. “Why don’t you have a spar with him and see if you can figure it out?” He offered, obviously amused.

Mihawk spared a withering glance for the redhead before focusing on the blonde mass once more. “I wasn’t aware you wanted your nephew dead that badly.”

Shanks snorted as the crowd of clones all shouted out in indignation.  “Naruto, try not to cut up Hawkeyes’ sword. He’ll mope for months if you do.”

Feral grins spreading across the sea of blonde-haired teens was the only response. Mihawk raised an eyebrow, hardly able to believe what the redhead was implying.

Then, as one, the horde moved and Mihawk was lost in the midst of them. “Oi, Hawkeyes!” Shanks called out, laughter on the edge of his tone, “Meet my nephew, Uzumaki Naruto, Shinobi of Konohagakure.”

There were simultaneous cries of shock as a large patch of blonde and orange vanished. “Then just who did I meet the last time?” Mihawk snarled as he took the moment to meet Shanks gaze.

Shanks smirked. “A shadow clone, one of these fine fellows.” He offered as he gestured to the crowd.

.:o:.

It was hours later, when Mihawk stood staring intently at the broadside of his sword in stunned shock, that the fight finally seemed to draw to a close.  The mess of clones had finally stopped reappearing, leaving one grinning and slightly out-of-breath teen in their wake. Shanks approached his nephew and patted him on the back. “Good job kid, though Mihawk may hold it against you for a while.”

Naruto glanced up at his uncle and grinned sheepishly. “I only scratched it.”

Mihawk turned his eyes from his sword to glare at the teen. “If you were anyone else you would be dead, boy.”

Naruto snorted, but didn’t respond to the death threat.

Shanks chuckled. “So, Mihawk, what brings you to this lovely little bit of island?”

Mihawk huffed but pulled a small stack of paper from some hidden pocket in his jacket. “Monkey D. Luffy is making quite a name for himself in Paradise; his entire crew this time.”

Shanks’ eyes went wide as he took the small stack and stared at the paper on the top. His mouth slowly curved upwards and stretched into a huge grin as he suddenly ran towards the shoreline waving the papers in the air. “BENN! YASOPP!! Luffy! He—! He tripled it again!!!”

Naruto sighed as his uncle began wading into the ocean. He quickly jogged after his uncle, and reached out to grasp him by the shoulder before the pair vanished in a yellow flash.

Mihawk blinked.

Shouts and yells of excitement filled the air, soon followed by the unforgettable sound of the Red-Haired Pirates diving straight into full party mode.

Another yellow flash filled the air and the blonde-haired teen reappeared, scooping a strange tri-pronged short-blade up from the sand as he did so. The teen turned to him with a grin and walked over, “No hard feelings about the scratch?”

Mihawk glared, but before he could say a word, the boy grabbed his arm. He stumbled as he suddenly found himself standing aboard the Red Force once more.

Mihawk bristled and snarled. “Never. Do. That. Again!”

The crew went silent for several long moments before the teen spoke again.

 “Yeah, Shanks-oji got all grumpy the first time I took him along as well.”

Mihawk stared at the teen incredulously; did he have no sense of self-preservation at all? Then he groaned and let out an annoyed huff before turning and heading down into the Red Force.

Shanks’ laughter filled the air once more, soon joined by his nephew’s voice.

Beckman sighed as he watched the whole scene, then he glanced down at the posters that had been left in his care and smirked. Declaring war on the World Government, the kid wasn’t doing anything by halves. He flipped through the stack of posters, curious about the rest of the boy’s crew. His lips twitched at the nose of the one called Sogeking and idly wondered if Yasopp would recognize it. There was the so-called pet as well; Benn would bet good money that the pet was really a Zoan user. Then there was the mysterious Nico Robin… and there was something about the woman’s gaze in the poster. She lacked the hunted look he remembered from her childhood poster.

Benn glanced up at a loud crash and spotted Shanks and Naruto in the middle of a broken keg. Shanks had lost some of the lingering haunted look that always lurked behind his eyes lately as well. Benn chuckled a bit more at the similarities between the loud-mouthed seven year old they had seen all those years ago and the loud-mouthed blonde they now considered nakama.

Mihawk reappeared and came to stand beside the first mate, wine bottle open and in hand. “He is different.” Mihawk stated.

Benn only smiled. “Shanks keeps going on about the kid’s haki being warm.”

Mihawk snorted but made no further comment and before long, a small smirk graced the Shichibukai’s lips as he too watched nephew and uncle.  “He’s going to drive the Marines insane.” He finally stated.

“Which one?” Benn asked chuckling.

Mihawk’s lips curled in a smirk as he produced a second wine bottle and handed it to Benn. “Both.”

Benn accepted the bottle and nodded in agreement. He shuffled the stack of papers to the green-haired swordsman, “Seems your own apprentice is making a name for himself as well. Second bounty and just like his captain, already breaking the 100 million mark.”

Mihawk’s expression turned more serious. “I would hardly call him an apprentice. Stubborn and foolish idiot is more like it, he swore to never again be defeated to his Captain the day I defeated him. His heart will either get him killed or see him through to the end.”

Benn smiled, Luffy had found a good first mate. His eyes traveled back to Shanks and his nephew and he sighed. A drinking contest had begun. He supposed it had only been a matter of time, as Shanks had wanted a rematch ever since the clone had revealed the fact that it couldn’t get drunk the last time.

Mihawk raised an eyebrow as he realized what was taking place. “Akagami trying to kill his nephew with alcohol poisoning now?”

Benn snorted. “He lost to one of the kid’s clones and wants to put the kid in his place. Captain has a reputation to uphold after all.”

Mihawk smirked at that, “The mighty Red-Haired Captain, out drunk by a mere teen? He’ll never live it down.”

Benn grinned and offered his bottle in toast. Mihawk raised his own and they both drank and settled down to watch. After all, Mihawk was right about one thing, someone would have to make sure the kid survived the night.


	22. Message of War

**Message of War**

_By Silver Dragonfly_   
  


* * *

 

“Sir! The Lookout has spotted Hawkeye’s coffin-ship.”

The Captain of the Marine ship looked up at the reporting Marine with an expressionof relief. “It’s about damn time. Bastard had to be off touring the New World instead of Paradise when we were assigned this duty. How far off is it?”

The reporting Marine fidgeted nervously. “About that sir…”

The Captain frowned, “Out with it!”

The Marine winced, “It’s moored with the Red Force offshore of the nearest island, Sir.”

The Captain froze and then glared. “Marine, I hope I heard you incorrectly. Did you just say the Red Force?”

The Marine gulped. “Y—ye—yes, Sir.”

The Captain snarled and sent papers flying off his desk as he surged to his feet. This was why he hated the Shichibukai. Damn pirates always did whatever they wanted and, because they were employed by the World Government, there was nothing the Marines could do about who they associated with. “Prepare a longboat,” he finally growled; at least there was no risk of being turned to stone by the whims of Hancock.

.:o:.

It was the sound of suppressed laughter and snickering voices that alerted Dracule Mihawk that he was not, in fact, alone on his own ship. It was the bits of conversation about Marines, and the state of one Marine’s trousers in particular, that tipped him off to the fact that something likely to be a great annoyance in the near future was currently seeking his attention.

He raised a hand and tipped his hat back from his face slowly before opening one golden eye to glare at those who were in turn staring at him. The crew of Red-Haired Shanks had all kept a respectful distance, though even now they continued to elbow one another, point, and make lewd gestures. Mihawk ignored them as his gaze swept over them and then settled on the very out-of-place-looking man in a white uniform with blue trim. Mihawk only just refrained from letting out a long sigh. “What could possibly be so important that you would dare to bother me here?” he growled as he slowly sat up, pausing briefly as something tickled the edge of his senses.

The Marine flinched visibly and then seemed to straighten while glancing nervously around.  The Marine’s gaze was distracted, frozen on something happening off to the side.

More snickers from the Red-Haired crew filled the air.

Mihawk ignored the pirate crew and turned to see what the Marine found so interesting.  His focus settled on the object of the Marine’s attention; he blinked and one eyebrow arched in surprise.

There, crouched on the deck, was Shanks’ nephew. The blonde-haired teen had a huge shit-eating grin on his face as he focused intently downward. Laid out on his back before the teen, snoring away, was the Red-Haired Captain, himself. Neither of these two facts alone were the cause of the snickers of the crew and the traumatized look now on the Marine’s face. No, the cause of such reactions was the black marker clutched in the boy’s hand as he giggled and doodled on his uncle’s face.  The oblivious Captain already sported whisker marks across his cheeks to match the boy’s own and Mihawk thought he saw what seemed like the start of a familiar spiral around the man’s right eye.

Mihawk twitched as he struggled to not let the ridiculousness of the situation, and his amusement at it, be revealed. It seemed that the drinking rematch against his nephew had backfired on the Red-Haired Pirate. He turned his focus back to the Marine, who had yet to answer his question.

“Well?” He asked, further annoyed as he fingered the hilt of his sword. It was at that moment he was forced to remember the hours he had spent polishing the blade to remove the blemish caused by his spar with the blonde-haired teen. Perhaps he should wake Akagami up to catch the teen in the act of his doodling. Then his head throbbed, and he also recalled the various bottles he had emptied along with the First Mate. No, adding Shanks’ shrieks to the current sounds would not be an improvement.

“A m—mes—message for you… sir.” The Marine finally stammered out nervously.

Mihawk sighed. “Let’s have it then, so you can get back to where you belong.”

The crew around them snickered at this and made various comments about the Marine running home to his mother. Mihawk ignored the Marine’s discomfort as he accepted the sealed packet of papers he was offered. The Marine however, did not move.

“Is there something else?” Mihawk asked and then twitched as something seemed to tickle the edge of his senses again.

“I—I am… I mean, I w— was o… ordered to wait for your response.” The Marine answered, finally getting that last bit out in a rush.

Mihawk stared.

“Sir.” The Marine finished weekly.

Mihawk refrained from letting out a snarl. There were times, when he really found the whole business of being Shichibukai more trouble than it was worth.

He opened the packet and scanned the documents within, stilling as he did so.

It was as if a ripple had spread across the ship and snickers silenced as eyes all turned and focused steady gazes on the Warlord.

“Return to your ship. I will join you when my business here is complete.” Mihawk finally said. His voice was cold and left no room for argument from the Marine.

The Marine gulped and nodded before turning to head toward the edge of the ship, glancing nervously at the now silent pirates who watched him go. He nearly tripped as he moved to climb over the rail, unnerved by how they had gone so suddenly from teasing him mercilessly to this sudden silence.

As the Marine vanished over the edge of the ship, Shanks began to stir and groan.

Naruto stepped away, the marker he had held moments before vanishing from sight.

Shanks blinked, and then groaned louder. “How…” he moaned. “How could you drink like that and feel nothing….” He whined as he took in the smirk on his nephew’s face.

Before the blonde could answer, however, Mihawk spoke. “Akagami.”

Shanks turned to meet Mihawk’s hard gaze and frowned. 

“The Marines are going to War with Whitebeard. I have been summoned to Marineford.”

There was a hiss of indrawn breaths across the ship.

“Ace…” Shanks whispered.

Mihawk gave a curt nod.

Naruto looked back and forth between his uncle and the warlord. “What does that mean?”

Benn came up to stand beside the blonde, “It means...” he began but then Shanks caught his first mate’s gaze.

“It means Ace has been taken captive by the Marines and they have announced his public execution date.” Shanks stated.

Naruto looked wide-eyed at the pirates around him and all the somber expressions.

Mihawk settled his sword comfortably on his back and moved toward the railing where his own ship was moored, then turned to face Shanks once more and paused. “The whiskers suit you Akagami, but the spiral does not.” With that said, he disembarked from the Red Force.

Shanks frowned, “Spiral? “

Benn stepped forward and offered the Captain a small mirror.

Shanks froze as he lifted the mirror to see his own reflection.  His gaze slowly shifted to meet that of his very fidgety looking nephew. “Naruto…”

The blonde teen chuckled nervously, “Yeah?”

“Explain.”

“Ah you see… well… um, now we have matching whiskers!?”

The red-haired Captain stared at his nephew, “And why aren’t you sharing my pounding headache?” He grumbled.

“Ah, well you know, I’ve always had this high metabolism, so I’ve never really been able to get drunk. Not that I haven’t tried!”

Shanks sighed, shoulders slumping in defeat, as he accepted the towel handed to him by a snickering Yasopp and began to scrub at his face. “This had better come off…” he grumbled.

.:o:.

“So are we going to try to rescue Ace?” Naruto asked as he sat down at the navigation room table beside Benn.

“We are not.” Shanks answered.

Naruto stared in surprise, “But…”

Yasopp patted him on the shoulder as he sat down on the blonde teen’s other side.

“It’s not that simple.” Benn explained, “Whitebeard will be making his own move to rescue Ace. After all, Ace is the second division commander and one of his declared sons. If we intervened and prevented Whitebeard from saving Ace himself, it would be an insult.”

“The Old Man would be pissed, and it’s not our job.” Shanks added. “The real question is whether the Marines now know who Ace really is. No, I’m more concerned about what the other two will do.”

“Other two?” Naruto asked.

“Kaido and Big Mom, Charlotte Linlin, the other two Yonko of the New World,” Yasopp offered.

“So what can we do, then?” Naruto questioned, his blue gaze determined.

Yasopp and Benn glanced from the teen, to each other and then toward their Captain.

Shanks grinned. “We prepare to go to War with the Yonko.”


	23. Incident Orange

**Incident Orange**

_By Silver Dragonfly  
_

* * *

_  
_

Blue eyes twinkled in amusement as they watched another good-sized group of Marines disappear through the doorway of The Drunken Gull. It was just as Shanks-oji and the others had said: a bar that catered to the Marines stationed at the local base, but was not run by the Marines themselves. With a grin plastered on his face, he made several quick hand-signs before a hazy screen of air covered him for a moment. That task completed, he strutted out of the shadows and made for the bar’s doorway. It was time for The Gallant Jiraiya to make his appearance.

.:o:.

“Benn—” Shanks moaned and hung off the taller pirate’s arm.

Benn let out a long sigh, “what is it, Captain?”

“I’m a terrible uncle.” Shanks sniffled.

Benn arched an eyebrow in question.

“I sent Naruto to a Marine Base.” The Redhead said, his voice shaded with tones of horror.

“You have been planning to do so for quite some time, Captain.”

Shanks wailed, “But I sent him alone! How could I send him alone?!”

“You just realized this now?” Benn asked, remembering again why he was usually the one to plan out any attack that required strategy.

Shanks sniffled.

“I thought that was why you tested him with Mihawk?” Benn asked after a moment.

Shanks fidgeted, “It is… but…”

Benn suddenly felt sorry for the blonde-haired young man, “You are going to become a mother hen with him, aren’t you?”

Shanks narrowed his eyes and looked away. “Maybe.”

.:o:.

Metal plates clanged as the cell door was slammed closed; the sound of iron tumblers sliding into place as a lock was turned quickly followed. “Make yourself at home and sleep it off, Old Man.” The Marine who had just finished turning the key said. There were several chuckles from the other present Marines present, who had helped escort the rowdy old man into the prison.

“You fellas are the best!” The white-haired man now behind cell bars exclaimed, grinning at the Marines. Then he blinked and squinted as he peered around. “But where are the girls?”

One of the Marines snorted as the group turned and left the corridor, the sound of footsteps echoing back to the cell.

“Well that was kind of rude.” The older man grumbled as he took a closer look at his surroundings, a bit surprised there was not even one guard left in sight. Well, that would suit him just fine. With quick practiced motions, the disguise was dispelled, and a blonde-haired, blue-eyed teen took the place of the larger white-haired man. “Thanks Ero-sennin.” He said softly, briefly remembering the time spent traveling with his godfather.

A moment later, it was a simple matter of a tossed kunai followed by a brief yellow flash, and the locked cell was empty once more.  Another flare of energy and five clones appeared in a semicircle around the teen. “Right then, time to get to work.” The appearance of brushes, ink and a large grin quickly followed. “Now, let’s get this place sound-proofed and secured to Shinobi standards.”

.:o:.

“Commodore, Sir!”

“Yes, what is it?” The older Marine asked as he kept skimming through the report before him. The Commodore glanced up as the recruit stopped before his desk, and frowned at the anxious look on the young man’s face.

“We have a situation, Sir.”

“What kind of situation?” The Commodore asked with a sigh and leaned back in his chair.

“At the main gate, Sir, it’s a woman; a civilian.”

The commodore frowned, “And what about her?”

“We seem to have lost her godfather, Sir.”

The Commodore’s eyebrow twitched, “Lost… her godfather. Explain, Recruit.”

The recruit fidgeted, “Well, that’s the thing, Sir. We arrested a man matching the description she gave last night at The Drunken Gull for disorderly conduct, but there are no release papers and no sign of the man himself now.”

Another Marine rushed into the room, “You better come down to the Main Gate, Sir.”

The Commodore closed his eyes and raised a hand to massage his brow before slowly rising to his feet, “Very well.”

The two recruits fell in behind their commander as he left his office and headed toward the Main Gate. His frown deepened as they approached the doorway leading to the Main Gate and he began to hear voices carry back to him. He rounded the corner into the open air and paused mid-step. There, surrounded by at least a half-dozen recruits, was a young blonde-haired woman. Her hair fell in two long pigtails waving gently in the wind on either side of her head. She sat perched on a stool someone had provided and clasped her hands around several tissues. Large watery blue eyes suddenly turned to meet the Commodore’s gaze.

He quickly composed himself and strode forward once more as he began speaking. “I’m terribly sorry for the confusion, Miss. There has apparently been some mix-up in the paperwork. Why don’t you come join me in my office until it can be sorted out; I’m sure your…”

“Godfather,” She quickly stated as she rose to her feet.

“Yes, your Godfather was released earlier and the paperwork misplaced. “ The Commodore explained.

The girl sniffled and clenched her tissue tighter as more tears began to fill her eyes.

The Commodore winced, “I promise you, we will find him.”

At that, the girl’s face brightened and the Commodore noticed the odd whisker-like markings on her cheeks. “You promise!?” She asked quickly.

“Of course, now if you would follow me.” The Commodore replied before turning his gaze to the clustered Marines staring at the girl. “You lot, find out what happened to her Godfather and report to me as soon as you have located the man.”

There was a staggered chorus of ‘yes, Sir’s as the Commodore turned and offered his arm to the young woman. “This way, Miss… I’m sorry, they didn’t tell me your name.”

The girl’s eyes widened and she hesitated for a moment before speaking. “Namikaze… Umi, Sir.”

“Lovely name; fitting for one who lives by the sea.” The Commodore responded as he guided her along. He led her into his office, and gestured for her to sit down in one of the waiting chairs facing his desk. “Now, why don’t you tell me a bit more about your godfather?”

“His name is Jiraiya. He’s an author and currently looking for a publisher here in the Grand Line.” She sniffed, “He… he said he was just going to the bar to ask around and look for inspiration. He often does that, and I wasn’t too worried when he wasn’t at the inn we were staying at this morning.” She sniffled again, “But… when I asked at the local bar… they said... he… he had been taken by the Marines!” At this, she rose to her feet quickly, tears falling freely down her cheeks. “He’s not a bad man, Sir! Please, you have to find him!”

The Commodore blanched and reached out for her hand. “Now Miss Namikaze, I’m sure your godfather is fine. Please sit down.”

It was at that moment that there was a loud _thunk_ as the Commodore collapsed onto his desk unconscious.

“That wasn’t needed.” The blonde girl stated as she rolled her eyes.

“He was holding your hand!” The blonde teen, who had moments before been disguised as a potted plant behind the now unconscious Commodore’s desk, argued.

“I had it under control!” The girl grumbled. “I can take care of myself!”

The blonde teen rolled his eyes. “Too bad nee-chan. Boss is ready for the next stage.”

“I know that! Idiot, I am you!” She argued back before a brief whoosh of displaced hazy air covered her and then faded leaving an exact copy of the other blonde in the room. “I’ll take his place; you take him to the cells.”

The first blonde teen grumbled but grabbed hold of the unconscious Commodore before both he and the Marine vanished in a brief yellow flash. The remaining clone glanced around the room before crossing his fingers and being covered by a haze of displaced air once more, this time the form of the Commodore appearing. “Stupid overprotective clones, how they decided a female henge was their sister….” He trailed off as he stared at the piles of paperwork on the desk and groaned. “Why did I have to get assigned to replace the one doing paperwork…” he grumbled as he settled down behind the desk.

.:o:.

Blue eyes narrowed as they met the little beady eyes on stalks of the Den Den Mushi. “These things are still weird…” Naruto mumbled as he reached forward to poke one of the eyeballs causing it to collide with the one beside it, making a soft _plock_.

“Shut up and find the one Shanks-oji told us to find!” Another Naruto hissed at him.

The first rolled his eyes but continued scanning through the rows of snails, more than half of them sleeping.

“Found it!” A third chimed in as he held out a little black sleeping snail.

It was at that moment that a Marine entered the room and froze, blinking.

The three clones glanced at each other, back at the Marine, and then grinned and waved.

The Marine frowned. “Who are you? Unauthorized personnel aren’t allowed in he—“

The three clones watched as he slumped to the ground, a fourth standing behind him with a smirk.

“You knocked him out, you take his place.” One of the clones within the room said with a snicker.

The clone standing in the doorway blinked, and groaned, before quickly using a henge to appear as the Marine that now lay unconscious. One of those within the room stepped forward and disappeared with the unconscious Marine in a yellow flash.

.:o:.

A bright flash in the prison corridor attracted the attention of those within the cells briefly, before they all seemed to slump back once more. The clone revealed by the flash with an unconscious Marine snickered as he began to carry his burden toward a nearby office. “Hey, Captain Orange, I’ve got another one for processing.”

A familiar blonde head peeked out of an open doorway with a huge grin. “Great! Think I’ve got this about perfected now.” he stated as he came out and eyed the unconscious Marine.

He flashed through several quick hand seals and then slapped his hand on the Marine’s back. Scrolling lines of bright orange spread out from under his palm and spread across the Marine’s uniform and body until after only a few moments he was completely covered.

The clone holding the Marine let out a yelp and dropped the unconscious man as the seals tried to spread up his own arms. “Hey! Watch it! Orange is awesome but I don’t want to be dyed too!”

The first clone chuckled and scratched the back of his head. “Oops.”

“I DEMAND TO BE RELEASED!”

“He’s still bellowing?” The nearly-dyed-orange clone stated in amusement.

“Oh yeah,” The clone designated as ‘Captain Orange’ replied.

“Relax ‘Commodore Orange,’ Boss will be back down here soon enough to have a chat with you.” The nearly-dyed clone called out at the imprisoned Marine.

.:o:.

Naruto shuffled through the stack of dispatch and recall orders quickly, but with care. Not once had he found anything that specifically talked about the upcoming execution of Portagas D. Ace, but instead there were dozens of orders relocating Marines from all over back to Marineford. Naruto didn’t need to be told what that meant. He had seen preparations being made for war before, only then he hadn’t realized what it all had meant. Now it left an uncomfortable knot in his gut. However, that information was not what he was looking for. He had already known from his conversations with Shanks-oji and the others that the Marines would be planning for war, so that was not what he was looking for at all. No, Shanks-oji had asked him to look for something else on this distraction and infiltration mission. Information on the Yonko was what he was looking for now.

 He had already found several reports about the Whitebeard pirates detailing all their known recent movements and projected futures movements based off those. He had found an entire file folder about Shanks-oji’s meeting with the older pirate, including reports about the fleet Naruto himself had helped destroy. He snickered as he read about the vandalism and the varied theories some Marines had come up with to explain it. Again however, this was not his goal.

“Here we go.” The blonde whispered to himself as he found two large files on both Kaido, The King of the Beasts, and Big Mom, Charlotte LinLin. He took a moment to briefly flip through the files and frowned wondering if he was interpreting what he found right. Well, he’d just have to see what Shanks-oji and the others thought of it and compare. He glanced at the file on the Red-Haired Pirates and then at the nearby goat that was eating paper from a wastebasket. He smirked as he dumped the file out into the wastebasket, and then grabbed a pile of the relocation orders to go with it. “Have a few snacks, buddy.” The goat bleated as it happily began chewing on the new piles. Naruto glanced up as a Marine knocked on the door and saluted him with a huge cheeky grin.

“All Marines stationed here have been accounted for, Boss. Communications also reported in saying there is some big official due in port this afternoon.” The disguised clone reported.

Naruto grinned. “Perfect; time I meet with Commodore Orange, then.”

The clone snickered.

Naruto raised an eyebrow; had the clones been up to something more that hadn’t been reported in yet? They did tend to get a bit weird the longer he used them, and it had already been a couple days since he’d arrived at the Marine station. “Something I should know about?”

The clone shook his head, “You’ll see, Boss.”

Naruto shrugged, and after sealing the files away in a scroll, which he tucked in his jacket, he reached out for the marker he knew lay in the prison corridor.

.:o:.

Naruto blinked and then turned around slowly in a circle as he took in the sight of all the imprisoned Marines. Not only were they all the most awesome color in the world; uniform, hair, and skin included, they all now bore a large spiral filled with red on their foreheads. He hoped the clones had made that mark more temporary than the dye; he’d hate to have his clan symbol tarnished by being associated with the Marines in such a way permanently.

“You guys have been having way too much fun.” Naruto stated as he glanced at the grinning clones standing in a row waiting for him. 

“Glad you approve, Boss.” One of the clones answered.

“So you are the one organizing all this?” an orange-colored man sneered from where he stood shackled.

Naruto turned to face the speaker and strolled over and crouched to stare the man in the face, then smirked. “Yeah, you could say that.”

“Who are you and what is it you want? You can’t expect to get away with all this.” The man demanded, while sneering at the blonde.

 Naruto raised an eyebrow, “Well, I will get away with ‘all this’ as you put it. What I actually want is none of your business. Now as to the first question, you really have no idea?”

The man designated ‘Commodore Orange’ by the nametag slapped on his suit jacket when he had been ‘processed’, glared.

“They really are clueless.” A clone muttered from behind Naruto.

The Commodore shifted his glare then returned it to the man in front of him. “Your appearance and that of your… copies matches the identity of Naruto, nephew of Red-Haired Shanks.”

“Should we give him a cookie?” another clone chimed in.

Naruto only smirked as the clones snorted and chuckled.  “Well, you have my first name right, at least, but let me give you a proper introduction.” The young man rose to his feet and stood to his full height before speaking with a grin. “I am Uzumaki Naruto, shinobi of the Elemental Nations and Sage of Mount Myouboku. Oh, and let me make this clear, I am not just some pirate’s nephew, I am the nephew of Uzumaki Shanks, Yonko, and Captain of the Red-Haired Pirates.”

The Commodore’s eyes widened slightly then narrowed. “And that is supposed to mean something to me?” he scoffed.

The clones all began to shout and curse. Naruto remained quiet though, a smirk on his lips as he stepped forward to speak directly to the Commodore once more. “If it doesn’t now, it will soon enough, that’s a promise.” And with that, he took a step back once more. “Well, I’ve got a few loose ends to tie up yet, and one of your superiors is due to arrive yet this afternoon. Make sure you tell them I said hello.”

“Boss!” A clone called out as it jogged up, a large scroll in his arms. “Finished raiding all their usable supplies from the warehouses, no ramen though.”

“What does he mean, raided the supplies?!”  Commodore Orange yelled.

Naruto ignored the Commodore and frowned as he accepted the scroll, sealing it into another that he tucked away as he dispelled the clone. Did no one in this world appreciate ramen? Moments later, all the blonde-haired clones that had been left vanished, leaving only copies of imprisoned Marines roaming the corridors.

.:o:.

Marines rushed from place to place as the large warship glided into the port and began docking at the well-maintained pier. The Vice Admiral scowled as he disembarked from his ship and began walking up the pier, ignoring the various Marines saluting him. There had been something off about all communications coming out of this way station base for the past two days and he planned to get to the bottom of it while his crew restocked their ship for the rest of their trip to Marineford.  A ranking Marine rushed up and saluted.

“Welcome to Way Station Base W-4, Sir!”

“I demand to meet with your Commander.” The Vice Admiral said quickly and continued to move forward without pause.

“Of course, Sir. Right this way, Sir.” The Marine quickly replied and began to lead the way back to the base’s central tower. The Vice Admiral’s lips tightened; there was something off about the Marines who were stationed here too, something ticking the edges of his senses. He remained silent, however, as he followed the Marine and took note of his surroundings carefully.  He couldn’t be sure, but something seemed to be going on towards the barracks, but again, he wasn’t certain.

“Right through here, Sir.” The Marine guide announced as he stepped aside and gestured through a waiting doorway.

The Vice Admiral didn’t spare the recruit a glance as he strode through and then froze. The office was empty. He whirled and strode quickly back into the hallway. “What is the meaning of this!? There is no one here!” He turned to glare but found the Marine gone. He turned toward his own men who now stared at the place the Marine had been. “Where did he go?!”

The Marines snapped to attention. “He… he vanished sir. Into wisps of smoke.”

“Impossible. The Moku Moku no Mi user is nowhere near this base and looks nothing like that man.” The Vice Admiral growled.

“It.. . it didn’t resemble a Logia smoke power, Sir.” The other Marine added. It was at that moment that two more Marines came running down the corridor.

“Sir!” They both shouted.

“What is it now!?” The Vice Admiral snarled.

“All the Marines who were here just vanished, Sir.”

“Our ship, Sir, it left the pier!”

The Vice Admiral’s eyes widened and he stilled. “Search the base. I want answers. Ensign, find me a secured Den Den Mushi.  There is something very not right here.”

“What about our ship, Sir?” one of the Marines asked.

“See if there are any other vessels in the port we can use to go after it.”

“Of course, Sir.”

.:o:.

The ‘Vice Admiral’ smirked as he received the memories of his clones left at the base. Oh that big wig Vice Admiral dude was not going to be happy. He glanced down at the helm and frowned, “We have shifted course Helmsman, correct it.”

The helmsman blanched and turned the helm to adjust the ship’s course. “Of course, Sir. Sorry, Sir. I have never sailed in the Blues, just the Grand Line and am not used to not following the log pose.”

The ‘Vice Admiral’ grunted. “This will be good practice for you. We’ve had an excellent tip off of pirates in the area and we are not going to let them slip away because of sloppy navigation.”

“As you say, Sir.” The helmsman replied, still apparently nervous.

It was at that moment the ship’s quartermaster approached the ‘Vice Admiral’. “If I might have a word with you, Sir? In private?”

The ‘Vice Admiral’ nodded and followed the man below deck toward his own office, then gestured for the Quartermaster to take a seat. “What is it, Quartermaster?”

“I must protest, Sir. We are not supplied to go sailing off to an unknown location at this time. If we had been allowed proper time to restock at W-4…”

“Quartermaster…” the ‘Vice Admiral’ interrupted.

“Y..yes, Sir?” The Quartermaster asked suddenly unnerved by the expression his commander now displayed.

“Are you suggesting we let pirates simply run free?”

“Of… Of course not, Sir, but…”

“No buts. Once the pirates have been dealt with, we will return to W-4 for our restock as originally planned.”

The Quartermaster sighed. “Understood…Sir, I will have to file an official record of my complaint.”

The ‘Vice Admiral’ chuckled. “Please do, you are dismissed.”

The Quartermaster blinked in surprise but then turned and exited the office, closing the door behind him to the sound of the ‘Vice Admiral’s’ continued laughter. Just what had gotten into the man?

.:o:.

The Vice Admiral stared and glowered. The entire prison cell corridor was filled with orange Marines.

“The Commodore is this way, Sir.” The Marine who had reported and led him here offered and gestured to the right-hand row of cells.

The Vice Admiral paced evenly down the corridor, stopping before the designated cell and stared, remaining silent.  The Commodore met his gaze for only a moment before looking away and fidgeting.

“Who?” The Vice Admiral finally asked.

The Commodore turned back to him and sighed. “He matched the description of Naruto, Red-Haired’s nephew. However, he introduced himself as Uzumaki Naruto, shinobi of the Elemental Nations and Sage of Mount something or other.”

The Vice Admiral’s eyebrow arched as he took note of the red circle and spiral marking the Commodore’s brow. “Uzumaki…”

The Commodore blinked, surprised. “You know of him, Sir?”

The Vice Admiral frowned and then turned to the Marine waiting nearby, ignoring the Commodore’s question. “Get them released and cleaned up. This orange is disgraceful.”  


“Sir!” Another Marine rushed down the corridor. “We located the Den Den Mushi, Sir, they were all asleep and we are working at rousing them now.”

“Good. I need to contact Headquarters immediately.”

.:o:.

“Vice Admiral! Pirate sails sighted ahead! Sir! It’s the Red Force!”

The ‘Vice Admiral’ grinned largely. “Perfect. I must thank you men for all your work.”  At that moment, at least two squads worth of Marines vanished into wisps of smoke. “Try not to get yourselves sunk on your way back to the base. Oh, and you might want to check the rudder, I believe the chain has been broken.”

With that said, the man jogged to the edge of the ship and made a throwing motion as a haze of smoke surrounded him. For one long moment, a blonde haired young man was visible before he vanished in a yellow flash.

.:o:.

The crew of the Red Force all turned to watch as the blonde teen appeared in a golden flash and dropped lightly to land on the Main Deck. “Shanks-oji! I’m back!”

“Naruto! You’re back! Did you get into trouble?! Are you hurt! Do I need to go hunt Marines?!” Shanks rushed up to his nephew and immediately began to check the blonde over for injury.

 

Naruto blinked, a bit stunned and overwhelmed. “Uh… I’m fine, and no, I’m not hurt.”

Shanks paused and took a step back, “Ah, well that’s fine then.”

“Forgive him, Naruto, he started to worry after you left.” Benn explained as he approached. “Was the mission a success?”

Naruto grinned widely as he unsealed the packet of files he had found and handed them to Benn. “Oh it was loads of fun, and man, that Vice Admiral is going to be pissed.”

At this the crew all stilled, they had not expected the kid to run into any Marines of that rank. “You ran into a Vice Admiral?” Yasopp asked as he came out of shock.

“His ship had just docked, so while he went into the base I borrowed it.”

“You borrowed a Vice Admiral’s personal warship?” Rockstar asked slowly.

“Yep.”

Shanks guffawed. “Well done kid; that will get their attention.”

Naruto grin matched his uncle’s, “Oh, but wait until you hear about the pranks.”

Laughter surrounded the ship as the crew began to change course and set sail, soon leaving the now disabled Marine warship out of sight as they listened to the exploits of their Captain’s nephew in what the Marines would come to call ‘Incident Orange.’

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a scene sequence that has been on the list to be done since very early on in this project, just had to find the right place for it to fit in. Lost Uzumaki is now officially six months old and plot wise still wants to grow.


	24. Pirate Politics & Old Legends

**Pirate Politics & Old Legends**

_By Silver Dragonfly  
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“That’s all of it.” Naruto announced as the last of a pile of barrels vanished into a scroll.

“That’s a handy skill.” Lucky Roo mused as he eyed the scroll. “Convenient; and you said anything you put in there will keep without spoil?” the large man inquired as he took a bite out of his sandwich.

Naruto chuckled. “That’s right. One of the most practical skills Ero-sennin taught me. Well, besides exploding tags, that is.”

Before Lucky Roo could ask any more questions, there was a loud crash from within the nearby bar, where they had purchased the barrels of sake. A second loud crash followed by a body flying out the back door. Naruto blinked and then frowned as he approached the crumpled form. “Oi, you all right?” he asked.

The crumpled figure clad in a pink suit hissed as it began to pull itself up.

A low chuckle came from the bar’s doorway as Yasopp stepped out. “He’ll be fine; would be a bit embarrassing for his Lady Captain if he really was that weak.”

Lucky Roo snickered. “Pekoms, isn’t it? Pretty gutsy to start throwing your weight around on one of Whitebeard’s islands with the Old Man still sailing; or did you really think no one would notice with all the fuss at Marineford?”

The slowly rising Pekoms growled as he adjusted his sunglasses, “As if what Big Mom wishes is any of your…” he paused as he took in the identities of those around him. “I see, and just what do the Red-Haired pirates plan to do here?”

Yasopp and Lucky Roo both laughed hard.

Naruto eyed the two, then rolled his eyes and decided to answer. “I had thought it was obvious: buy booze. Shanks-oji insisted we stop here for sake.”

The man identified as Pekoms snarled, “You— ”

“Oh, you didn’t think we would notice what Big Mom was up to?” Yasopp interrupted, “Did you really think Shanks would let her claim one of his favorite restock points without complaint? Whitebeard has never cared that we often restock on some of his islands and the Captain would be most annoyed if they suddenly stopped being able to supply us.” Yasopp explained as he idly twirled a revolver in one hand.

“Is that a threat?” Pekoms hissed.

Lucky Roo grinned and Yasopp smirked while Naruto looked on, amused.

“Consider it a warning from Red-Haired Shanks that Big Mom shouldn’t be too hasty.” Yasopp suggested.

“Ah! She’s one of the Yonko, right?” Naruto suddenly exclaimed.

Lucky Roo and Yasopp both paused and stared at the blue-eyed young man before groaning and shaking their heads. They kept forgetting Naruto was still relatively new to the whole pirate culture.

“You–! You–!” The feline-looking man spluttered, staring at Naruto.

Yasopp groaned, “Yes, he’s the Captain’s nephew, but don’t get any big ideas.” Yasopp warned, his eyes turning hard.

Naruto laughed easily, “Relax, Yasopp, I can take care of myself.”

“It’s not you I’m really worried about,” Yasopp told him. “It’s the Captain and Benn that worry me if we let you get into trouble.”

Naruto blinked and then a mischievous grin spread across his face as he turned to the staring pink clad pirate. “So, think I could meet this Lady Captain of yours?”

Yasopp cursed and Lucky Roo nearly choked as the man named Pekoms stuttered before answering. “Boy… do you have a death wish?”

It was Lucky Roo who managed to defuse the situation before Naruto could answer. “Some other time, Naruto, we need to get these supplies back to the ship.”

“Ah, right!” Naruto answered, as he scooped up the large scroll he had been using, slinging its carrying strap over his shoulder so it rested comfortably against his lower back.

The pink clad member of the Big Mom Pirates watched them go and gulped nervously. His Captain was not going to be pleased, but none of them had suspected Red-Hair’s interference.

.:o:.

“Naruto! Did you bring the sake?” Shanks asked, his eyes twinkling the moment his nephew set foot on the deck of the Red Force.

The blonde teen grinned, “Maybe.”

“Maybe?!” Shanks whined.

“Well, there was this lion-faced pink man—“

“One of Big Mom’s,” Yasopp interrupted.

“Yasopp! You ruined my story!” Naruto grumbled.

“Oh?” Shanks sat back with a smirk crossing his face.

“It was as we suspected, then?” Benn asked as he exited the navigation cabin on the deck above.

Lucky Roo chuckled. “The poor thing panicked once he recognized us. Didn’t help when Naruto began asking to meet the Big Gal, herself; think Pinky nearly wet himself.”

“I still don’t see what the big deal is…” Naruto muttered.

Shanks guffawed as crew all around them stilled and turned to stare.

Benn sighed. “Leave it to the Captain’s nephew to have no concept of politics and the dangers around them.”

Naruto wrinkled his nose in distaste. “Pirates have politics?”

_Puru puru puru. Puru puru puru._

All eyes turned to the little black snail sitting on a small stand next to Shanks’ chair.

The snail’s eyes snapped open as it began to speak. “Urgent Communication Line open, go ahead with your Report.”

“Emergency Report from Marine base stationed in Sabaody Archipelago, Grove 66.” A second voice began, “The Human Auction house is under Pirate attack! The Celestial Dragons are being held hostage. Unconfirmed reports indicate they have been assaulted by pirates within the Auction house. Requesting immediate assistance from Headquarters.”

“Identities of the Pirates involved?” The first voice asked.

“Five Supernovas: Captain Eustass Kidd and his First Mate, Killer; Surgeon of Death, Trafalgar Law; Straw Hat, Monkey D. Luffy; and the Demon Pirate Hunter, Roronoa Zora. The rest of the Straw Hat crew have all been sighted as well.”

“Report received.”  There were several moments of silence before the first voice spoke again. “Weapon Research is sending backup and Admiral Kizaru is being notified. Do not let the Pirates escape.”

“Understood!” 

  1. The black baby Den Den closed its eyes and seemed to go to sleep, despite the eyes of all the Red-Haired pirates staring at it.



“Luffy…” Shanks breathed out quietly his entire body tense.

Naruto looked at his uncle, surprised by the sudden display of emotion. Sure, he had heard the stories about the boy, but Shanks’ reaction now hinted at something so much more than he had first thought.

“What happens if he’s caught?” Naruto asked quietly, almost afraid to voice the question.

Shanks grimaced. “At best, execution.”

Naruto flinched; execution was the best?

“Life imprisonment in Impel Down after that,” Shanks continued. Then his gaze hardened and he met Naruto’s blue gaze steadily. “Because the crime involves assault on the Celestial Dragons, the chances for the worst case scenario have become much higher.”

It was then that Naruto remembered what Shanks had told him previously about those known as the Celestial Dragons. “Human Auction house…” Naruto whispered and Shanks nodded slowly.

“Slavery. For one like Luffy, like myself, it is the worst thing they could do to him and his crew.” Shanks spoke, the emotion behind the words clear.

Benn appeared on the deck above them. Naruto blinked, not sure when the man had left.

“I put in a call to Shakky. She said He is watching out for them.”

Shanks relaxed visibly and chuckled as the tension eased away. Several other crewmembers smiled as they, too, began to relax. “Leave it to Luffy to find Him when no one else has heard from _Him_ in months.”

“Him?” Naruto asked, now thoroughly confused.

Shanks grinned. “Old man Rayleigh.”

Naruto hummed in thought. “You’ve mentioned that name before.”

Shanks nodded. “I’d like you to meet him, sometime. The former first mate of the Pirate King is a legend himself, although, these days, I hear he mostly just drinks and gambles.”

Naruto snorted. The man sounded way too much like a couple of old legends he himself had known and still knew. Then he smiled. If this guy Rayleigh was anything like his own old drunk gambling legends, Luffy would probably be just fine.


	25. Perception

**Perception**

_By Silver Dragonfly  
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* * *

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Dracule Mihawk, the World’s Greatest Swordsman and one of seven pirates given the title “Warlord” by the World Government, was a well-known man. His reputation was justified, and his piercing golden eyes were known for seeing everything to those around him. Because of these facts, he had grown accustomed to nervous and calculating stares directed his way. It was normal, and he had come to expect it to some degree. What he was currently experiencing, however, was not.

He twitched as it happened again, tensing as he extended his senses, but refusing to look back over his shoulder. Instead, he shifted his golden gaze to the Vice Admiral who was approaching as they both walked down the corridor from opposite directions. The man stared, not at Mihawk himself, but at him none-the-less.

The Vice Admiral narrowed his gaze and frowned. He paused a moment, almost tripping as he realized Mihawk was studying him, and then looked away as he continued down the corridor and past the Warlord as if  nothing had happened. Mihawk was tempted to stop the man and ask just what he had been looking at but refrained; he would not be made a fool of so easily. He sensed it, however, when the Vice Admiral looked his way once more as they continued to move in opposite directions.

This had been going on for days. Mihawk was not absolutely certain when it had started, but he had a strong suspicion Akagami and his nephew had something to do with it. Just as he was sure they were also guilty for the summons he had received upon arriving at Marineford to a private meeting with some of the eldest Marines still in service.

“Mihawk, sir. They will see you now.” A duty officer announced as he approached the designated room.

Mihawk did not bother to vocalize a reply but just swept forward into the room and quickly surveyed the space, noting its occupants. This was going to be an interesting meeting, to say the least. The Fleet Admiral Sengoku “The Golden Buddha”, the Marine Hero Vice Admiral Garp “The Fist”, and lastly Vice Admiral Tsuru “The Great Staff”.

“You’ve been keeping some questionable company, Mihawk.” Sengoku grumbled as soon as the door closed behind the Warlord.

Mihawk raised an eyebrow in query as he let his gaze travel slowly from one to the next. Settling himself into the waiting chair, he propped his feet up on the table that separated him from the three elite marines.

“You know who I mean!” the Fleet Admiral snarled as Garp began laughing at his right.

“You’ve been spending time with that Red-Haired lad again.” Tsuru spoke, a hint of fondness in her voice as she mentioned the Yonko Pirate.

Mihawk refrained from any visible reaction as he noted her tone and choice of words in reference to Akagami.

“Red-Haired Bastard corrupted my grandson.” Garp growled.

Sengoku glared sharply at Garp and then returned his focus to Mihawk. Mihawk glanced from The Fist to The Buddha and then grinned, his eyes glowing in mirth. “Monkey D. Luffy is the grandson of a Marine Hero.”

Sengoku’s expression turned even more sour.  “Your duels with Red-Hair Shanks are well known, but there have been no rumors of such clashes in ten years. However, you continue to be seen keeping company with the Red-Haired Pirates. What is your association with them, Mihawk?!” Sengoku demanded.

Mihawk twitched once as his senses were tickled once more and he noted that all three of the elder marines all seemed to shift their gazes ever so slightly up and to his left before focusing on him once more.

“Well,” Tsuru spoke, “Are you allies with the Red-Haired Lad or not?” She demanded.

Mihawk was very tempted to roll his eyes. “No.” he answered, his voice clipped.

“And yet you were found on his ship.”

“A way to pass the time, only,” Mihawk replied idly.

“You were not given the position of Shichibukai so you could laze about with the Yonko.” Tsuru chided.

Mihawk did not respond.

“Give us one reason, Dracule “Hawkeyes” Mihawk, why we should not strip your position?” Sengoku said slowly, a hard edge in his tone.

“Whitebeard.” was Mihawk’s slow and single reply.

Garp guffawed and Sengoku sighed.

“Now, the blonde young man recently identified as nephew of Red-Hair Shanks…” Tsuru spoke.

And here, Mihawk mused, was the heart of the matter.

“What do you know of him?” The elder woman asked, the softer tones previously present in her voice now gone.

“Loud.” Mihawk offered.

A pencil snapped as Sengoku glared at him. “Is he, in fact, a blood relation to Red-Hair?” The Fleet Admiral demanded.

Mihawk studied the trio of Marine Admiral and Vice Admirals in front of him before speaking. “He is.”

“And does he answer to the name of Uzumaki Naruto?” Sengoku then asked, resigning himself to having to take a direct approach.

“He does.” Mihawk answered with no change in his demeanor.

“Does Red-Hair share the Uzumaki relation or is it from another?” Tsuru then asked, her gaze calculating.

Mihawk was almost surprised by this question; he had not expected it. Was there something to the boy’s family name then? “Uncertain.” Mihawk finally answered. Red-Hair had told him that the relation was through a long dead sibling, but not if that sibling had been an Uzumaki.

Sengoku raised a paper to show Mihawk the solid red circle outlined in black with a black spiral line winding through to its middle. “Does either Red-Hair or his nephew wear this symbol?” the man demanded.

Mihawk raised an eyebrow but answered, “The boy wears it in two places on his jacket. One just below his left shoulder on the sleeve, the second in the center of his back between the shoulder blades, only the one on his back is red.”

Garp straightened. “So, it’s true then.”

A flicker of feeling tickled Mihawk’s senses at the old marine’s words and Mihawk’s gaze shifted to the often-eccentric Vice Admiral.

Garp studied Mihawk carefully then grinned. “You’ve tested the boy. How is he?”

Mihawk barely refrained from blinking in surprise; he was not used to such perception from the man. Then he frowned: he would have no choice but to answer such a direct statement.

“He is strong.  Although his fighting style is unlike anything I have encountered before.” Mihawk answered slowly.

Sengoku cursed vehemently.

“You are dismissed, Dracule, but do not leave Marineford.” Tsuru ordered.

Mihawk did not move for several long moments, then gracefully rose to his feet and turned to leave. He paused before opening the door, “Red-Hair will go to war to protect his own.” He said quietly before opening the door and letting it close behind him. His own mind puzzling over the bits of information he gleaned from his polite interrogation. The blonde teen traveling with Akagami made the oldest of the admirals uneasy; this was both intriguing and unsettling. A war with Whitebeard was on the horizon and it would make the Marines very cautious for now, but after… well, it was not his problem.

He stopped as he found his path blocked by a large form.

“Bartholomew Kuma.” Mihawk stated.

“Dracule Mihawk.” The large man replied in a matching tone. “You have a delivery waiting.”

Mihawk frowned as the strange tickling sensation occurred again, but ignored it to focus on the other warlord’s statement. His gaze narrowed, the man wouldn’t have… yes, he would. Mihawk did not bother to answer, however, and moved past the man continuing on his way. There was nothing he could do about it now, he only hoped whoever it was that the Tyrant had given passage to would be gone by the time he himself returned home.

.:o:.

It had been nearly two weeks, and nothing. Had it gotten bored and fallen asleep? It wouldn’t be the first time it had happened. Sakura had screamed at him and then proceeded to beat him to a pulp when that kunai-clone suddenly dispersed in her hand. He’d been very careful about making sure he didn’t leave any henged clones lying around for a while after that. Two weeks… if there was one thing Naruto knew, it was that his clones could get weird sometimes. Most often, it was the ones that he had running around for extended time periods, although even that had gotten better with all the practice he had had lately; but two weeks and it hadn’t popped yet. He growled and muttered, if the bastard had found a place selling ramen and was off eating his favorite food without telling him again….

Shanks finally turned to his nephew and stared at him intently.

Naruto froze in place, sensing his uncle’s gaze. He looked up at the older man, eyes widening.

“What is it?” Shanks finally asked, amused.

Naruto fidgeted nervously, “Well, see… I … ah…”

Shanks raised an eyebrow.  “You…?”

Naruto glanced sideways as he continued to fidget. “IkindoftaggedMihawkwithaHiraishinmarker.”

Shanks blinked. “Say that again?” He asked slowly.

Naruto sighed, his shoulders drooping. “I tagged Mihawk with a Hiraishin marker.”

Shanks blinked again. “Isn’t that the…”

“Yes.” Naruto answered quickly.

“That might come in handy. I’m surprised he didn’t catch you at it.”

Naruto glared, “Oi! I’m a Shinobi!”

Shanks waved his hand dismissively, “Of course, of course.” Then Shanks paused as he noticed his nephew resume his fidgeting. “That isn’t all of it, is it?”

Naruto looked sideways again and began to mutter.  “I replaced the feather in his hat with a henged clone.”

Shanks blinked slowly as the words processed. He stared at his nephew eyes widening. “Clone.” He said pointing to Naruto.  “Feather.” He said his arm moving into a flapping wing motion. “Hat?” He said at last pointing to his head.

Naruto nodded.

Shanks mouth slowly spread into a wide grin and then, between one heartbeat and the next, the Red-Haired Pirate collapsed to the deck, his laughter ringing out across the ship.

Naruto blinked and then smirked as he stared at his uncle’s antics.

“Oi, Naruto. You aren’t supposed to break him.” Benn grumbled as he turned toward the noise, but smirked and began chuckling along with several nearby crewmembers.  “Hawkeyes is going to try to kill you for that.”

Naruto chuckled, “Ah, well it will be worth it to see his face.”

 “Clone, feather, hat.” Shanks mumbled and began giggling again.  



	26. Of Challenges and Promises

**Of Challenges and Promises**

_By Silver Dragonfly_

* * *

 

Ink flowed in smooth lines as a steady hand guided the brush across the paper; Up, down, across, lift the brush and touch down on the paper again in a new place; the movements smooth and well-practiced. With a final stroke, the brush was lifted and the ink covering the small paper tag glowed blue before, in a blur of motion, the ink retracted and shifted across the paper until a marking a mere fraction of the original size of the ink work remained visible.

Blue eyes studied the results intently for several moments before the now complete seal joined a nearby pile of similar slips of inked paper.

“Whatcha working on there, Naruto?” Rockstar asked as he approached the blonde teen and settled against the ship’s railing beside him.

“Stasis seals.” Naruto answered as he prepared the next slip of paper and began to apply the ink. Rockstar watched with interest and let out a quiet whistle of awe as the ink moved when Naruto finished.

“So, what’s it for?” Rockstar asked.

“Field medics use them to put patients into a suspended state. This gives the medics more time and freedom to move the patient off the field of battle and begin initial treatment.” Naruto explained. “I developed it with my teammate, Sakura. She’s one of the very best medic-nin Konoha has, and is always looking for ways to improve field medicine.”

Rockstar blinked. “Uh… sounds neat.”

Naruto glanced over at the dark pink-haired pirate. “You didn’t understand most of that, did you?”

The pirate chuckled. “It’s to help people get healed during a fight?”

Naruto grinned. “Basically.”

“So, this Sakura, she your girl?” Rockstar asked.

Naruto sputtered and ink went flying; there was a brief sizzle followed by a small explosion as scorch marks soon covered the deck space that had been serving as Naruto’s writing surface.

“Is that a yes?” Rockstar asked with a grin as the blonde turned to him revealing singe marks covering his cheeks and nose, his blue eyes open wide. “Don’t even joke about that!” the teen hissed.

Before Rockstar could comment further, the lookout began to shout.

“CAPTAIN! Ships to the Starboard! They look like Kaido’s fleet!”

Shanks rose to his feet from where he had been sitting comfortably under the large red and white umbrella on the quarter deck.  He surveyed the ship as crewmen all turned his way awaiting his orders. “Yasopp!” He finally called out.

“Captain?” The dirty-blonde-haired pirate responded, a smirk on his own lips.

“Make sure Kaido realizes we are here, and that as of right now, this section of the sea belongs to the Red-Haired Pirates.”

There were cat calls and jeers across the ship as Yasopp bowed with a flourish “Aye, Captain.”

It was several minutes, as the crew all began to gather and watch, before Yasopp finished his preparations. “Anything else to add, Captain?”

Shanks considered and then his lips quirked. “Naruto, could you provide Yasopp with one of your Tri-pronged kunai? Yasopp, plant it on the main ship, at Kaido’s feet, if possible.”

“As the Captain asks.” Yasopp responded before fitting the kunai onto a bolt with a red strip of cloth. Once he was done he turned back to the strange cannon-like contraption he had first set up.

Naruto looked on in curiosity, “That looks like—”

“Just watch.” Shanks interrupted, grinning. His sniper didn’t get much opportunity to show off like this, after all.

There was a crack and sizzle, as a fuse was lit, and then a crackle and _whoomp_ as a projectile shot forth. An orb of red sparkling light streaked across the sky arching into the air above the ocean with streamers of orange and gold trailing behind. Meters before it reached the waiting pirate fleet it suddenly expanded. The form of a glittering red dragon filled the air and roared as its body made contact with the sails of the main ship, wings arching out to encompass the next two on each side. The form faded into glittering sparkles of light and crackles of sound, leaving flames across the sails and embers drifting down to the deck below.

No sooner had the dragon struck, than Yasopp fired the crossbow sending the quarrel into the sky, red cloth streaming a foot behind it as it flew.

Yasopp waited several moments then chuckled. “Message delivered, Captain.”

Shank laughed, “Well done.” He then turned to his nephew, “So, Naruto, how do you feel about making a visit to Kaido’s ship? I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to see us.” Behind the redhead Benn sighed, but said nothing to argue.

Naruto arched an eyebrow and then snickered. “Yeah, as if you didn’t just try to set his ship on fire, thrilled for sure.”

There was a golden flare as the uncle and nephew pair vanished from the deck of the Red Force.

“Is it bad, that I was tempted to tell Naruto to take care of the Captain?” Yasopp asked suddenly.

Benn took a long slow inhale from his ever-present cigarette and then exhaled again before answering. “No, but then we’d have to remind Captain to look after Naruto and they would both pout.”

Yasopp winced and chuckled. “Yeah, good point.”

.:o:.

Golden energy flared then danced and swirled as it faded away, very like the flames now dwindling from sails and yard lines. No sooner had the golden light dissipated, then a wave of pressure spread over the decks of the ship, smothering in its intensity, as it covered ship and crew. Wood groaned, gasps filled the air, and in moments, men began to collapse where they stood, some even plummeting out of the sails and yard lines to fall and land in misshapen heaps. Dark eyes peered out from behind wisps of vibrant red hair, a sinister smirk gracing the lips below.

“Thank you for the hospitality.”

Eyes filled with rage and vicious intent glowed from within the dark shadowy den-like space that occupied the main deck.

“Red-Hair,” A deep, wild voice breathed out slowly, the rage its owner restrained texturing the words with sharpness. “I did not come here to fight you.”

Shanks did not let his smirk falter. “It is your unlucky day then, ‘Lord of the Beasts’ Kaido.”

“You think to tame me so easily, then?!” The man snarled and deep gouges appeared in the wood below the Yonko’s feet.

Shanks arched an eyebrow, “So, the great Beast can be tamed?”

The hulking form snarled from its shadowy den. “Why are you here, Red-Hair Shanks!?”

Shanks chuckled lightly, “Oh, I decided I rather like this section of the sea and wanted to claim it for myself. Then my cute and adorable little nephew wanted a bit of adventure, so you see—”

“HEY!” an indignant voice called out as annoyed blue eyes framed by golden hair stepped out from behind the redhead.

“Do not try to be sly like the fox now, Red-Hair.” The wild voice spoke once more, the tension ripe as the sound of wood creaking from pressure began to fill the air. “You wish to prevent my interference at Marineford.”

Shanks chuckled once more. “Now that you mention it; that is also true.”

“You will not be able to stop me as easily as this, Red-Hair. You are a fool to come here so unguarded.”

Shanks eyes sparked as he grinned ferally, “Who said anything about ‘unguarded’?”

There was a clash of steel on steel as several blades and claws were blocked and deflected by the blonde teen guarding his uncle’s back. “Eager bunch.” The blonde teen said with a grin to match his uncle’s, a hint of red flickering in his eyes.

“I will shred you for your interference!” The wild voice of Kaido snarled, eyes glowing with fury, and the sound of wood splintering spread as the shadowed figure dug claws into arm rests and started to rise, sharp teeth glinting in the shadowed light.

 “No, I don’t think you will…” Shanks said lazily in reply as he continued to watch the dark shadows. “And I don’t think you are quite grasping the situation.” The red head stated with a smirk. “Naruto, you said that skill of your father’s was incredibly effective on trees; there seems to be a few here that could be done without.” Shanks said casually.

Naruto chuckled. “How many?” The teen asked as pirates all around them snarled.

“Four.” Shanks said lightly.

At nearly the same instant that the blonde vanished in a series of golden flashes, steel was drawn and Shanks sliced his sword in one sweeping stroke. Pirates who had jumped at the chance to take advantage of what they thought to be an unguarded moment were sent flying; a handful soon landing with large splashes. At that same moment there were several impacts and the sound of screeching wood could be heard over the commotion.

 Shanks glanced back over his shoulder and chuckled as he studied the large hole now visible through the ships main mast.  Already, the thin edges left were bowing outward. “Nicely done; you were right about it being very impressive against trees.”

The blonde grinned. “Thanks.”

“Well then, I suppose we best head back before Benn begins to fret.” Shanks said lightly, sending another wave of foolish pirates flying. “Hmm, you should probably have someone fish those ones out. That’s the problem with so many Devil Fruit Users on a ship. You have to have enough non-Fruit Users around to fish them out when they fall overboard.”

There was a loud crack as the main mast began to buckle.

Kaido roared and lunged, his claws clashing with steel as Shanks blocked his strike. “Now, now, don’t be so hasty,” Shanks mocked, and his tone shifted. “Consider this your friendly warning. If you try to continue into these waters, neither you, nor your ships will survive it.” Shanks cautioned his tone serious and as hard-edged as his blade. “I will make this scheme of yours very costly for you, that is a promise.”

Kaido pulled back but continued to snarl. “You will regret this, Red-Hair.”

Shanks lips turned up in a dark grin, “Try to keep it interesting.”

Then both the Red-Haired Captain and his blonde nephew vanished in the same golden energy that they had arrived in. Creaking wood and the sound of snapping lines filled the air as all four masts of the large ship began to fall.

.:o:.

Benn exhaled slowly as he watched the destruction befall the main ship of Kaido’s fleet and felt his lips curl up in a smirk. Shanks could, and often did, cause all sorts of mayhem and mess all on his own. Combined with his nephew, however… he was thankful that their energy and enthusiasm had such a convenient target, even if this did mean the Red-Haired Pirates would likely be dealing with many more petty squabbles from Kaido’s subordinates in the coming months.

“You think Kaido’s fleet has problems with fleas?” Lucky Roo asked as he munched on a drumstick.

“With all those Zoan users… man you’d have to burn the ships and shave them all to even have a hope of getting rid of all the bugs. And the flea baths!” Yasopp answered with amusement.

There was a golden flash and laughter announcing the return of the Captain and nephew.

“So, Captain,” Yasopp drawled. “Did the Beast like our hello?”

Shanks chuckled. “I’m afraid he doesn’t appreciate your artistry, Yasopp.”

“Orders, Captain?” Benn asked, wanting to know if a fight was waiting for them yet today.

Shanks hummed in thought as he glanced back towards the singed-looking fleet. “I think we managed to deliver the message that crossing this sea will be far more costly than the grumpy Beast will really want to risk. We will maintain our position here and continue tomorrow to be sure; never trust a cornered Beast, after all.”

With that statement given, the crew returned to their duties and Shanks turned to his nephew. “Something he said bothered you; I could feel it in your haki. There was a moment of something dark threaded through it.”

Naruto glanced downward. “I… sometimes I can sense negative emotions, and there was a lot of anger on that ship. It… sometimes it resonates with Kurama’s energy.”

Shanks draped his arm over his nephew’s shoulders and tugged him close. “Well then, nothing to worry about.” Naruto blinked in surprise and Shanks smiled at him. “I already know you have that well in control.”

Naruto slowly smiled back at his uncle. “Yeah.”

“Now,” Shanks continued as he glanced around at the crew who still lingered nearby. “Did I hear something about fleas?”

.:o:.

 Night enveloped the ocean slowly at first, and then shrouded it in near total darkness as no moon rose to highlight the waves and play upon the Great Water’s surface. It was calm and quiet; the only steady noise was that of waves lapping against the hull of the ship, which rocked gently with their lullaby. It was a night of soft murmurs and whispers of content. It was a night of starlight and darkness, of stillness and motion; and deceit.

It was the sound of lapping waves further out across the sea that first drew the attention of the Red Force’s night watch and lookout. It took only moments for the lookout to tap a rhythm out on the small spring-bound piece of wood. Shortly after the tapping sound faded, three shadowed figures converged on the main deck facing out toward the ocean on the starboard side of the ship. There was a quick scrape and hiss before the light of a lit match broke the darkness and then vanished quickly to reveal the soft embers of a lit cigarette.

“Wasteful Bastard,” a low voice stated quietly from the first of the three gathered as they stared at the large dark shadowy form drifting closer across the water.

“Did he really expect that to work?” another stated in disbelief.

The last only chuckled darkly. “Yasopp, you know what to do.”

The voice which had muttered in disbelief only moments before grunted, and then the sudden, unmistakable sound of a rifle being cocked and a safety being released was heard filling the night. A breath later there were two shots, so close together they were almost simultaneous. A whistle and whine filled the air followed by a distant thump and creak.

For several long breaths there was nothing, and then fire roared and exploded upward and out over the ocean, sending wood and pieces of debris flying. Screams and shouts carried over the water and were soon followed by noisy splashes into the waves.

More of the Red-Haired Pirate crew had appeared on the deck and now watched silently as the great ship burned hundreds of meters away from its intended target, but much closer than it had been when fiery dragon wings had kissed her sails that afternoon.

“He turned his entire ship into a bomb?” Naruto asked in surprise as he came to stand beside his Uncle, Benn, and Yasopp.

“Che.” Yasopp grumbled. “More than that, poor bastards.” He raised his weapon once more after reloading and fired out another set of shots. Far off to the portside and coming at an angle towards the aft of the Red Force, two long boats burst into flame and chaos. Curses and shouts of disbelief filled the air as living bodies abandoned the now-worthless wood that had been their transport.

Two more shots sounded and what had looked like floating barrels erupted into burning pillars of fire and light before sinking into the waves. “He must have used nearly all his booze supply to mine the sea between us. “ The sniper grumbled.

Shanks mouth twisted in a frown. “Unforgiveable.”

“Captain!” a crewman called out before the Red-Haired Captain could fall into a full rant about the wasted alcohol. “The Den Den is picking up another call!”

Shanks glanced to Yasopp. No words were said as the blonde-haired man nodded quickly and reloaded his weapon once more.

Shanks headed toward the cabin, Benn and Naruto following behind.

_Puru puru puru. Puru puru puru._

The snail’s eyes snapped open as it began to speak. “Urgent Communication Line open; go ahead with your Report.”

“Critical Status Report Update, Impel Down.” A second voice began. “Identity of the intruder has been confirmed as Monkey D. Luffy. His motivations and reasons for his foolish attempt to invade Impel Down at this time are unknown. His status is currently considered terminal after receiving a full dose of poison when trying to face down the Warden. He has been incarcerated on level 5.”

“And the status of Portgas?” the first voice responded.

“Unchanged.”

“Very well. Continue to report regularly as established previously.”

“Understood!”

 _Kerchek._ The black baby Den Den closed its eyes and began to snore.

A heavy tension filled the small space of the navigation cabin and wood began to creak in protest. No one spoke for several long breaths as all eyes focused on the Red-Haired Captain whose hand was wrapped tightly around his sword hilt.

“We are changing course.” The Red-Haired Captain finally spoke, his voice strained.

Benn sighed then seemed to ready himself before speaking. “We can’t do that, Captain.”

Steel sang as it was unsheathed and pirates cursed as they ducked. Benn remained calm as he blocked the incoming blow and waited.

“Luffy is—”

“Facing the consequences of his own actions.” Benn responded sharply.

“I can—”

“He would never forgive you. “

Shanks flinched physically at the accusation.

“He went to save his brother. If Ace dies when we could have stopped it, just to save Luffy…”

Frustration and anger rolled off the Red-Haired Captain as he struggled to contain his frustration with the situation and his wishes to help those he cared about.

“Everyone, get out.” was the quiet order that followed soon after. One by one the Red-Haired Pirates slowly vacated the room. Benn paused as he met Naruto’s gaze, the blonde teen unmoving. Benn tilted his head toward the door but the teen shook his head in response.

It was not until all the others had gone, leaving only Captain and nephew in the room, that Naruto stepped forward and approached the bounty posters proudly displayed on the wall. “He’s on his own adventure, chasing his dream. You made him a promise.” Naruto finally said quietly.

The angry energy suddenly seemed to wash out and the redhead drooped.

“I know.” The older man finally replied quietly.

“Do you believe in him?” Naruto asked.

Shanks blinked and looked up, “Of course; I didn’t give him the hat on an idle whim—“

“Then trust him to pull through on his own.”

Shanks let out a long breath and ran his hand back through his hair, a few weak chuckles slipping out in the process.

“Besides, if we left now, wouldn’t that Wild Beast just do what it pleased?” Naruto asked, smirking.

Shanks paused then chuckled. “All right, you win. Kaido is going to regret sticking around if he is still here come dawn.”

Naruto grinned. “That’s the spirit!”

Outside the navigation cabin the Red-Haired Pirates stared as the sound of quiet laughter drifted past the door.

“The kid is insane.” One crewmen breathed out in shock.

Benn and several others chuckled in response; it was why the kid fit in so well, after all.

.:o:.

It was only a couple hours past dawn when the course was set and the Red Force began its journey toward the Marine Headquarters. In the ship's wake, signs of destruction lay scattered across the ocean’s surface as the remains of several ships floated amongst the waves. The battered and damaged hulls of two more ships could be seen further in the distance, moving away as many oars, reached out like spidery legs from each, to push the ships forward as there were no sails nor even masts left to guide the ships’ path.

 Warnings had been given.

 Promises were made.

A challenge issued and answered.  



	27. Observation of War

**Observation of War**

_By Silver Dragonfly_

* * *

 

It had started as a simple prank, a way to ruffle the overly serious man who was an odd friend-rival of his uncle. When the news had come about the upcoming execution, mission parameters had changed. He had learned, whether he wanted to or not at the time, of the importance of information while traveling with Ero-Sennin. Information gathered now could save a life later.

At first, it had been rather boring as his hawk-eyed transport spent nearly all his time glaring at the Marines or sleeping. This had allowed him plenty of time to figure out how to flare his chakra in just the right way to irritate the man’s senses. He had nearly broken his henge and dismissed himself several times as the swordsman grew more edgy and paranoid. Then they arrived at Marineford.

Just by listening to those around the Warlord, he had learned quite a bit about the Marines and the upcoming war. He now knew who all the other Shichibukai were and some details about them. He also now knew, and would recognize, the individual energy signatures of the three Admirals; each of them gave off a unique aura and he wondered if it had to do with Devil Fruits or if it was just the Admirals themselves. He also learned that any Marine of the rank Captain or higher known to have any real skill had been summoned and relocated to the headquarter base. There was little-to-no doubt that all the nervous whispers about Whitebeard, Ace, and the daily arrival of these reassigned Marines were leading to something big; and now the day of that something had come.

As much as the Marines collectively seemed to scoff at pirates and the lives they lived, there was no doubt that the Marines took the Pirate Yonko Whitebeard very seriously. From where Mihawk now stood, he could see hundreds of Marines standing ready and waiting. The execution platform itself was guarded by the three Admirals, and right below them, the seven Shichibukai. He kind-of thought the Marines were stupid as the afternoon progressed and the time of execution drew near. Making such a grand spectacle just to kill a man that was the adopted son of such a figure was really asking for trouble. Although, he supposed, it was probably a good thing the Marines did not think like shinobi, or Ace would have been dead long before anyone could have a chance of preventing it.

He had just begun planning how he would infiltrate and battle this Marine-army himself, if needed, when Ace was brought up onto the execution platform. Tension crescendoed to a peak as all present waited for Whitebeard to appear and the execution to begin.

He felt his breath catch as he heard the question demanded of the raven-haired man shackled and kneeling at the top of the platform, and could hardly believe the self-righteous tone of the supposed Fleet Admiral as he announced, for the entire world, the young man’s bloodline and cursed him. They hated him, hated him for who he was, for something out of his control. It wasn’t even the fact that he was a pirate that caused them to hate so much. They hated him for something Ace had never asked for, never chosen, but that simply was. It cut through to his very center and he wouldn’t be surprised if even the Boss felt it. Then a shout rang out. The Gates of Justice were opening and the Control Room personnel were not responding.

Even in his current disguise, he could feel his lips twitch into a smirk. Ace was not alone; the Whitebeard Pirates had come for their lost son and brother. It was as Ace had said; Whitebeard was truly his father despite the Fleet Admiral’s Declaration.

Marines began to shout as sails were sighted and pirate marks identified, although the Shichibukai seemed bored. It was then that he felt it. The tell-tale tingles of chakra that indicated one of his markers. This was a short range one, not meant for long distance, and he realized it could only be the marker he had left aboard the Moby Dick. The great ship itself was not in view; however, he could feel it was close and getting closer.

If he had not been disguised, his jaw would have dropped as the sea swelled and the form of the Moby Dick suddenly appeared in the middle of the Marineford Bay from underwater. That… was cool. He would definitely have to ask Shanks-oji how a ship could sail underwater later on. Then the fighting began.

He watched in awe as Whitebeard shattered the air and the very Earth trembled. He watched, in growing excitement as one of the Admirals countered and froze the entire bay, including the incoming tsunami. He watched silently and with a keen eye to observation as the two forces, Marines and pirates, clashed. Already he was seeing all sorts of abilities that, if he had been back home, would have been marked as special bloodline or clan jutsu; but here, were most likely Devil Fruits. He was unsurprised though, when Mihawk drew his sword and launched a ranged attack. The attack, however, was blocked by one of Whitebeard’s Commanders. Similar attacks and blocks began to occur across the battlefield.

Then came the giants and he found himself amazed by the diversity of the people in this world. Normal people, Devil Fruit Users, and now Giants; all were here fighting.  Something shifted in the air; a new element had arrived. At first he thought it must be Shanks-oji, but he could not sense the Boss, and he could always sense the Boss when he was near enough.

A shadow spread and new screaming voices cut through the clamor of battle. Suddenly a large Marine ship fell with a crash of splintering wood and groaning people.

He gawked as he felt Mihawk tense and observe the new arrivals. A raven-haired teen, wearing a straw-hat stood tall amidst the chaos and called out.

“A~~~~CE~~~~!!! I finally found you!!!”

He listened in stunned silence as Mihawk confirmed the identity of the teen with a quiet, “Straw-hat…”

Monkey D. Luffy was in the middle of the war. _Well shit_ , he thought, Shanks-oji was going to freak out.

If the battle had been confusing before, the arrival of Monkey D. Luffy and a bunch of other crazy-looking people caused the confusion to explode. He felt his heart twist at the shouted conversation between the two brothers. It reminded him strikingly of that day so many years ago at the Valley of the End, when he had chased after the teammate he thought of as a brother. He only hoped this day ended differently than that day had.

The Marines seemed to take a twisted offense to the arrival of the raven-haired young pirate as the Fleet Admiral began to speak once more, confirming for the entire world, that yes, Portagas D. Ace and Monkey D. Luffy were sworn brothers and raised together, grandsons of the Marine Hero, Monkey D. Garp, but they didn’t stop there. No, they went on to announce, that just like Ace, Luffy was the son of one of the World Government’s most hated enemies, the revolutionary, Monkey D. Dragon. Luffy himself, however, did not seem to care about what was being said as he simply began to charge forward, intent on reaching his brother.

He felt the shift in Mihawk’s demeanor and then heard his quietly spoken words.

“My apologies, Akagami; I will not hold back here. Now then, Fate, the next generation’s Golden Child, is he finished now, or will he somehow escape from my black blade?”

Oh, Shanks-oji was going to be pissed. There was no way he wouldn’t be telling his uncle of this. He watched as the straw-hat-wearing teen spotted Mihawk and changed his course, clearly not wanting a fight with the Warlord at this time. Mihawk almost seemed to sigh.

“You remain within my range.” The Swordsman stated without emotion and then attacked.

The speed of the movement alone was nearly enough to cause him to dispel. Yet, he was relieved to see Straw-hat dodge the attack.

Mihawk spoke again, “You seem unusually calm,” and launched another attack, slicing off the entire top half of the frozen tsunami wave behind Luffy.

_Show off._ He thought, watching carefully as Mihawk continued to target Straw-hat. He nearly panicked when Luffy used some other pirate as a shield, and then threw the pirate, surprisingly unharmed by the sword strike, so the body nearly collided with where he still sat perched atop the Warlord’s hat. He was quickly amused, though, as Mihawk’s attempt to continue after Straw-hat was blocked by a dual-wielding swordsman, another one of the Whitebeard Commanders. It seemed Whitebeard had ordered them to aid the sworn younger brother of their own brother, Ace.

He lost track of Straw-hat for a while after that, too busy keeping himself from getting dispelled as Mihawk battled the Whitebeard Pirates. If anyone noticed the feather atop the Warlord’s hat seem to duck, or suddenly shift one way or another to avoid being cut, or hit; there was too much else going on to give it much attention. He did notice, however, when the trap the Marines had planned began to be put into effect; additional forces closed in from behind and great steel walls rose up to enclose the bay where the large frozen waves had not already done so.

He felt a wave of dismay as he watched the Moby Dick as it was bombarded by fists of magma and begin to sink to the depths below the bay.  He had little time to do more than notice the death of the great ship, however, as Mihawk was besieged by pirates again now that the Warlord was trying to pursue Straw-hat.

With the trap in motion, the execution officially began; and then between one heart-stopping moment and the next, the execution was stopped. Within his disguise he stared in awe, it was that haki… like Shanks-oji, though it seemed wild and uncontrolled in comparison. 

He nearly giggled in glee as he began to notice pirates from all over the battlefield, even one of the other Shichibukai, began to support Luffy as he charged again and again for the platform.  He felt his heart twist as the older Marine, the two pirates’ grandfather, stood between them only to fall to his younger grandson’s fist. He watched with building excitement as the brothers were reunited. Then the Fleet Admiral attacked and the scaffolding collapsed. The platform was swallowed by smoke and covered in Marine fire. Smoke filled the air only to be overtaken by fire as the voice of an older brother scolding his younger rang out.

Portagas D. Ace was free, the execution itself was stopped, and both raven-haired pirates could be heard laughing as they began to run toward the bay. He watched them fight together in growing fondness, reminded of fights beside his own teammates when everything just flowed together. Then he heard Akainu’s voice and saw Ace stop moving. The Whitebeard Pirate’s back went rigid and he watched Luffy falter as his brother stopped running. He knew suddenly that it was time.

His disguise was dispelled as the blonde-haired teen suddenly appeared over Mihawk’s head. He rested his hand on the Warlord’s hat, seal work appearing from beneath his palm.  He landed on the Warlord’s shoulder, but was ignored for the moment as the entire battlefield froze for three long heartbeats, the attention of all, on the arm of magma that struck through the back and chest of Portagas D. Ace.

Before any could note his presence, the blonde teen vanished in a wisp of displaced air.


	28. A Gutsy Shinobi

**A Gutsy Shinobi**

_By Silver Dragonfly_

* * *

 

Naruto sat on the aft deck with his back against the cabin wall, blue eyes staring unfocused out at the ocean and sky behind the ship.  Resting on his lap, clasped between his hands with fingers gently running along the spine, was a well-worn book. _I’m doing it again, Ero-sennin._ _I’m going to fight for your dream; I’m going to fight to find understanding. This world is so different, and there is such a rift between the people, it’s not even like they are all rival shinobi… its more than that. I don’t know what it is yet, but there is something really dark in this world. Some are fighting against it though, and I’m going to do what I can to make sure they aren’t lost… that Shanks-oji isn’t lost… that I’m not lost._

Suddenly, a tremor ran through the ship and shook the young man out of his thoughts. “What...”

“Whitebeard,” Shanks said as he came out onto the aft deck from inside the cabin. “The fighting has begun.”

Naruto blinked. “What’s his power?”

Shanks nodded, “The Gura Gura no Mi, ‘a Devil Fruit Ability that could destroy the world’.”

Naruto stared, “That’s… I mean, I’ve seen some crazy things done with Chakra, but this… that was the ocean floor?!”

Shanks smirked. “Right, there is a very good reason Edward Newgate has been recognized as the world’s strongest pirate. We should be seeing the effects of it, even here, shortly.” the redhead said as he moved to stand against the ship railing.

“CAPTAIN!” A voice from the lookout post called out.

“Ah! I see it.” Shanks called back as Naruto rose to his feet and looked in the direction his uncle’s gaze was focused.

“Tsunami…” Naruto whispered in awe.

Shanks smirked. “Whitebeard is setting the battlefield, but we will not be caught up in it just yet.”

The Red-Haired Captain rested his hand comfortably on the hilt of his sword, drew it slowly, and stood ready. The growing wave came closer and Naruto noticed the direction the Red Force faced was adjusted to bring the ship perpendicular to the large wave’s crest. Then, just as he began to think he should do something, his uncle moved and made a single strike. The wave rushed over and around the ship and then was past it; leaving the Red Force untouched, save for a fine mist.

Shanks chuckled and reached over to ruffle his nephew’s hair after sheathing his sword. “No use in rushing to the fight only to have the ship in pieces when we get there, right?”

“I guess.” Naruto grumbled as he ducked out from under his uncle’s hand only to get snagged around the shoulder and pulled up against the older man’s side instead. They stood there together like that for several long moments, both getting lost in thought as they stared out at the ocean behind them, the coast of the Red Line a constant dark smudge to the west.

“What was that book you were holding when I came out here?” Shanks asked, finally releasing his nephew and turning to rest his back against the rail.

Naruto turned to face his uncle and smiled, “It’s the first book Ero-Sennin ever wrote. It contains his hopes and dreams for the future. My parent’s liked it so much they named me after the main character.” Naruto answered, blushing a bit in embarrassment.

Shanks chuckled, “I thought you said your godfather was a pervert? Is it a dirty book, then?”

“NO!” The blonde teen exclaimed quickly in horror. “I’d never live it down…” he groaned, but then laughed lightly. “Ero-Sennin wasn’t just a pervert. He was a super-pervert. This was his first book; an adventure story about a gutsy shinobi. Everything he wrote after that was porn, though.”

Shanks blinked: he _had_ been joking, “… seriously?”

Naruto snickered and looked at his uncle with a sly grin, “Why, Shanks-oji, would you like copies of them?”

The Red-Haired Pirate stared at his nephew in disbelief; had the boy really just offered to supply him with porn?

Before the redhead could reply, the lookout called out. “Gates of Justice are visible off the starboard bow!”

Uncle and nephew fell silent for several long moments after the alert. “You know, you don’t have to take part in this. This fight is between the Marines, the World Government, and the Yonko. You do not need to fight.” The red-haired man said gently after a while.

The blonde at his side turned to stare at him in shock. “What—”

“I know you can fight, but…” Shanks sighed. “This isn’t like the few fights we’ve had on the open sea, or your infiltration of that Marine base. This is going to be a war. There will be deaths; a lot of them I’m sure.”

Naruto turned back to the ocean and didn’t respond again for a while. “War… I hate it.”

“That’s why I wanted to make sure you had the choice. I won’t force you into something you hate.” Shanks glanced sideways at his nephew at those words.

“But I couldn’t live with myself if I stood by and did nothing while you and the others fought.” The blonde replied, his voice heavy with the weight of his decision.

Shanks smiled softly, he really hadn’t expected a different answer. “We should be arriving soon...” Shanks turned to face his nephew more fully as the blonde suddenly stiffened. “What is it?”

Naruto did not respond at first as he was suddenly overwhelmed with all the memories of a long-term Kage Bunshin returning.  It took precious minutes while he sifted through the memories quickly and then bit out a curse.  He turned to face his uncle, “You wanted to know what happens when I draw on Kurama’s energy.” He said quickly and suddenly was enveloped in golden energy.

The red-haired captain stared in surprise at the glowing energy slowly pulsing around his nephew with a life of its own, noticing the strange black markings that now covered the boy’s clothing as if they were tattoos. “What— ”

“I’m going ahead.” Naruto said softly, his blue gaze meeting his uncles own dark orbs.

Shanks frowned “I told you: this isn’t like the Marine base, the strength gathered together for this war… Even with what I know you can do, there are those who could—“

“Ace is dying.” Naruto said quietly. “I’m going,” reaching a glowing hand out to rest on his uncle’s shoulder, the golden energy swirling up to flutter in the man’s red hair, “I promise I won’t die.”  

Shanks met his nephew’s gaze steadily for several heartbeats, letting the feel of this new energy swirling around him sink deep, then nodded once to his nephew.  An instant later the blonde teen vanished, the golden energy that surrounded him blending in with the usual golden flash that accompanied his teleport technique.

Shanks looked down at the book he found himself left holding and chuckled as he read the title. “Tales of the Gutsy Shinobi... looks like you picked a perfect name, Kushina-nee.”


	29. Fire and Ash

Fire and Ash

By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

 _Red Dog_ , Mihawk mused, was not quite the right epithet for the Marine Admiral. He watched silently, almost lazily parrying those few pirates still foolish enough to cross blades with him, while the magma man stalked the two D. Brothers. Admiral Sakazuki truly was a ‘Mad Dog’. Mihawk noted that Sengoku was more than occupied with a nearly berserk Garp, and added _moronic_ to the list of words that described the Red Dog. However, before he could dwell on the subject further, his sight and senses filled with gold. A young man dropped to the ground beside him, his normally blonde hair looking even more gold, thanks to the unusual energy that covered him like a cloak. Mihawk’s gaze narrowed and he growled, “You!”

The golden energy reached out and caught the arcing black blade with ease and the individual in the heart of that golden energy smirked. “You can be pissed at me some other time, Hawkeyes.” And then the golden form was in motion. If Mihawk’s focus had not already been centered on the teen, he would not have been able to track the boy’s movements across the battlefield; for just as suddenly as the gold-covered blonde had appeared beside the Warlord, he now appeared at the D. Brothers’ side.

.:o:.

From the instant the very familiar– but absolutely unique – chakra had flooded his system and shifted his senses, he had been able to feel the overpowering negative emotions covering the Marineford base. Hatred of pirates, hatred of Marines, hatred of so-called justice and so much more; this was the downside of using Kurama’s chakra. Even with Kurama working as his partner, it was nearly overwhelming in its intensity. He had learned to face the hatred and accept it for what it was; to not let it control him, but this…

 _It is like the warring clans of the Elemental Nations…you will have to be careful here, Naruto._ A familiar deep voice echoed in his mind.

 _I know._ Naruto answered, returning his focus to the moment. He quickly took in what had changed in the time it had taken him to sort the clone’s memories and transport to the marker the clone had strengthened on Mihawk’s hat. He sensed and caught the attack from the Warlord; there was no real hatred in it, and promised the man a fight later as he moved on.

He spotted the D. Brothers almost immediately, more from the attention of so many others on them than any physical identification. Particularly, it was the hatred being directed at them from hundreds of Marines and the potent waves of grief surrounding them that guided him.

He arrived at the D. Brothers’ side and quickly slipped a stasis seal onto Ace’s back beside the gaping wound and activated it. He began to face the younger brother but turned suddenly as he sensed movement, the glowing chakra arms reaching forward over his own shoulders to intercept the fist that had been aimed at both him and the D. Brothers.

“Haven’t you done enough damage?!” Naruto growled at the stone-faced Marine.

The Marine narrowed his gaze at the glowing young man. “Who are you, and why are you interfering with Justice?!”

“This is not Justice!” Naruto snarled back and the golden glowing limbs pulsed as swirling spheres appeared in his palms and he drove them forward into the man’s torso.

The stoic Marine’s eyes widened in shock as bits of magma were sent flying and his entire torso was almost destroyed. The man pulled back; though he seemed un-phased by the damage to his chest, he looked at his right arm in surprise. Where thick glowing molten magma had been clearly visible before, now there was black stone; smooth and glossy over what had been muscle, jagged and rough where joints should be. “What have you done?!”

A clash of sword on stone and the impact of blows filled the air before the boy could answer.

The Marine snarled at the newly arrived Whitebeard Commanders. “Damn Haki users…”

“Naruto, isn’t it?” Marco asked as he kept his gaze focused forward on the Marine Admiral.

“That’s right.” The glowing young man answered as golden energy swirled around him and the two D. Brothers then seemed to reach out and began dancing amidst the flames and feathers covering the First Division Commander’s arms.

“Taichou!” Jimbe called to the First Commander as he joined the group standing between Ace and the Marine Admiral.

“Get them out of here. We’ll handle Akainu.” The phoenix ordered, ignoring the odd feeling from the energy now playing in his feathers.

The Admiral cackled, “It’s too late for Fire Fist, take a look!”

Naruto whirled and rushed to Ace’s side as he spotted the seal paper burning up. “Shit! The seal isn’t sticking!”

_Feed the fire our chakra!_

_What?!_ Naruto yelled back at the Fox.

_I can’t explain it, just don’t let those flames go out if you want to save him!_

Naruto didn’t bother to respond again as golden energy swirled forward from him to intertwine with the faint flames he could still feel deep within the wounded man. He pulled out another stasis seal and quickly applied it.

“It’s no use.” The quiet, subdued voice of Ace whispered, “I know I’m dying. My organs have all burned up inside, I’m not going to last long…”

Naruto could only watch and listen quietly as last words were spoken between the two brothers. A tug at his senses pulled his focus up and away from the two briefly, and he spotted Whitebeard facing them. Time seemed to still as his gaze locked with that of the old pirate.

 _Will you help him?_ The old pirate’s eyes seemed to ask. Naruto stood slightly straighter in response and nodded his head slowly once; trying to tell the old man that he would do everything he could.

“Thank you for loving me!” The final cry of Portagas D. Ace drew Naruto’s attention back to the two young men before him.  Naruto leaned forward quickly, catching Ace as he slipped from his brother’s arms. His attention shifted to a nearby piece of paper as it slowly crumbled into ash and vanished. Naruto looked worriedly at the younger brother – so close to his own age – that now sat in shock, his head tipping backward as a wail of agony left his throat and echoed over the battlefield. From all around them Naruto could hear the stunned whispers of shock saying Ace was dead.

“You’re next, Straw-Hat!” The voice of Akainu roared.

“I won’t let you take his life!” Marco answered as blue flames flared and he met the Admiral’s attack and blocked it once again. “Jimbe! Take Ace’s brother and go! It’s Ace’s last wish!!!”

The large fishman quickly scooped up the catatonic rubber boy and began to run as Whitebeard Pirates all around them closed ranks to defend the escaping pair.

“Marco! I’m taking Ace!” Naruto called out as he picked up the unmoving form of the Second Division Commander.

“I told you!” Akainu growled, “I wouldn’t let those two Brothers escape! Did you forget that?!”

At that moment, Whitebeard slammed into Akainu from behind, knocking the Admiral down to the ground. Akainu struck back, taking off Whitebeard’s left ear and mustache. Whitebeard grunted and smacked his left fist into the Admiral’s ribs. The sound of cracking filled the air as the ground crumbled and split, creating a chasm across the entire Marineford base, and the wounded and hunched over Marine fell into the newly formed depth.

Naruto stared wide-eyed as the Whitebeard Pirates around them began to cry out, the chasm now separating them all from their Captain. Naruto met the old pirate’s gaze once more before golden energy swirled up and both young men vanished from the battlefield.

.:o:.

Energy flared and pulsed as it appeared over the waiting seal matrix. One heartbeat, then two heartbeats and the seal glowed brightly before slowly fading back to just black ink; the energy that had fueled it having been spent.

.:o:.

Golden energy flared in waving tendrils as they unwound to reveal a glowing figure holding an unmoving man in his arms. Amber eyes snapped open as the pulsing energy that filled the room continued to flow over the two figures in rippling waves. There was another flash of gold and they vanished leaving faint wisps of power quickly fading behind in the small apartment.

Across the village of Konoha there were startled shrieks and gasps of surprise and shock as the glowing golden figure reappeared in the center of a corridor of the Konohagakure hospital.

“BAA-CHAN! SAKURA-CHAN!” He yelled, golden energy reaching out for the two he sought.

“Naruto!” Sakura yelled as she stormed out of a nearby room and froze mid-step as she took in the sight of blood covering Naruto’s torso and the figure he held. She stared, and almost seemed to whimper. _He’d promised to be careful_.

“It’s not mine, Sakura! He needs help! Quickly!” Naruto answered her unspoken thoughts and strode forward.

Sakura stiffened and then blinked. “Right, sorry. This way, the operating room on this level is open. Someone get Tsunade-shishou, immediately!” She snapped out and began issuing further orders.

“Put him here!” Sakura instructed as she quickly began a medical scan and then frowned.

“What the hell hit him?! He’s missing huge parts of his internal organs and the entire injury is almost completely cauterized.”

“I can’t explain everything, but from what I saw, he basically took a punch of pure magma from the back while shielding his brother.” Naruto offered as he kept feeding tendrils of golden energy into the comatose form.

Sakura didn’t question further but set to work. “I’m going to kill you for this later.” She hissed as green healing energies filled the room save for where the golden energy still pouring from Naruto continued to flutter.

“Just do what you can. He’s important to a lot of people.” Naruto said gently.

Sakura met his gaze and held it steadily for a long moment and nodded sharply.

.:o:.

Shanks stood atop the dragon figurehead of the Red Force and stared intently at the mess of ice and broken ships they were quickly approaching. He reached out, extending his senses, and began to read the events of the battlefield. Instantly he was flooded with a surge of feeling from his nephew as the teen disappeared from the mess ahead of them, and reappeared for just a moment below deck behind him and then vanished completely. He spared a moment of thought for him but let it pass; he could worry about his nephew later.

Refocusing on what lay ahead, he let his senses trace over the different voices he could hear, noting quickly those already gone that should not have been. _Whitebeard has fallen, and Ace is missing as well._ He mused quietly, and hoped that Ace had, in fact, been with Naruto. _Akainu is on the hunt…the son of Dragon – Shit – Luffy! His voice is there I can just barely feel it…Mihawk, Marco… is that…_

The Red Force slowed and Shanks leapt from the figurehead and rushed forward, not even needing to reach out with his senses to know his crew was behind him.

“LET’S STOP THIS!! STOP FIGHTING!! IT’S A WASTE OF HUMAN LIFE!!!” a voice rang out over the battlefield and everywhere across the bay both pirates and Marines paused.

Shanks made a dash as the pause continued: this was the moment they needed. He heard the young Marine’s voice crying for the continued loss of life and then felt Akainu’s focus shift to that voice.

 _Not today…_ Shanks thought as he drew his sword and slipped between the raging Admiral and the one who cried for the bloodshed to stop.

“Well done, young Marine. For better or for worse, those few seconds of courage will profoundly influence the fate of this world.” Shanks said as he met Akainu’s gaze steadily. He sensed Benn focus on the other Admiral hunting Luffy and inwardly smirked as he felt the ripple of change spread across the battlefield with their arrival. He took the time to pick up the old worn straw-hat that lay on the ice nearby. _Hat... Luffy, to leave this, you truly gave everything trying to save your brother..._ He stood straight and let his eyes slowly cross over the battlefield. “I’ve come, to put an end to this war!”

.:o:.

Mihawk sheathed his weapon with practiced ease and began to stride away from the battlefield.

“Hawkeyes! Where are you going?!” a Marine shouted.

“I agreed to fight Whitebeard, but I never agreed to fight Red-Haired Shanks.” Mihawk responded, _or his blasted nephew._ Nor did he really have any desire to watch Shanks continue to grandstand over the remains of this battlefield. _The brat was holding back before…_ He mused as he considered his rival’s nephew’s actions on the field of battle. _He took Ace’s fallen body when he disappeared…was he sent to try and rescue Fire Fist? Had Shanks been willing to risk his nephew to rescue the son of his late captain? And yet,_ he considered as he walked away, _the brat had blocked a blow from Akainu without batting an eye in that strange golden energy cloak_. One thing was certain: this war had tipped the balance of power and the results of that shift would be felt for years to come. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and a huge thank you to all the readers who have favorite this story. It started out as a fun little project to let my muse play with (since I just couldn’t let the concept go). It has since then grown, developed and evolved. I never imagined that it would receive such a following with so many favorites. This last week has seen the story top 1000 favorites (FF.net) and I am honored, so once more, thank you. In honor of this milestone there is a new Lost Uzuzmaki related fanart piece up on my DA and Tumblr accounts. I hope you enjoy it, and this new chapter. 
> 
> P.S. I wanted to post this on Saturday after learning Lost Uzumaki had reached the 1000 fav milestone. My betas said no, I had to wait. So despite the decree of 2 week updates (due to crazy life slowing the pace of progress down), this one is going up one week later instead. Enjoy. 


	30. Betting Hope on Luck

Betting Hope on Luck

By Silver Dragonfly

 

* * *

 

Naruto knocked gently on the doorframe before entering the room and approaching the bedridden woman. “Hey, Baa-chan. Sakura-chan told me you were awake.”

“Gaki,” the blonde haired woman grumbled but smiled gently. “What have I told you about calling me that?”

Naruto just grinned and settled into the open chair at her bedside. “You gave us a scare, Baa-chan.”

The woman snorted. “I’ll be fine.”

“You could have killed yourself!” Naruto argued, his face serious. “Sakura-chan told me.”

Soft brown eyes met blue and the woman was reminded of the moment she made her choice.

_“The sealing array is almost complete. We need to apply suppression seals to restrain his bloodline ability_ _” Shizune advised as she worked quickly, ink brush flowing smoothly across the surgery room floor._

_“He resisted the stasis seals._ _” Naruto explained as he continued to hold the patient, golden energy still flowing steadily around both him and the unconscious man in his arms._

_“It will take all three of us performing the surgery to keep him from burning up._ _” Sakura advised as she finished laying out surgery implements with nurses following her directions._

_Tsunade finished her own preparations and then turned to the blonde teen and the man he held. She had heard Sakura_ _’s diagnosis and done her own as well. The fact that the raven-haired young man had a hole through his back and chest, and for all practical purposes was clinically dead, had not stopped them from preparing the surgery. Naruto had asked them to save the man, and they had responded accordingly, but she reconsidered now, knowing what it would likely cost her. Her gaze met blue and held steady._ _“Tell me why you brought him here, Naruto,_ _” She requested._

_“He shielded his brother, who had come to save him, from a fist of molten magma._ _” Naruto answered simply, but his eyes spoke volumes more. Naruto saw himself in this man. She suspected that, like with his former teammate, failure to save this man would devastate the young man she had bet her own hope on._

_“Array complete,_ _” Shizune announced and Naruto immediately stepped forward to lay his burden down in the center of the array and then knelt above his head, continuing to keep a pulse of golden energy flowing from himself into the unmoving form._

_“Let_ _’s begin then._ _” Tsunade ordered._ _“Sakura, control his bloodline ability and monitor his heart. Shizune monitor organ and muscle regrowth. Begin._ _”_

_The sealing array glowed bright white before shading green with healing energies. Golden strands filtered throughout it all as the green glow spread from the array to the patient and was guided by the three medics at work._

The memory faded as she recalled the feelings that had been brought to the fore by his explanation as to why he had brought the patient home to Konoha for treatment. It was reckless and had reminded her very much of when Naruto had taken blows meant for her shortly after their initial meeting; when he had won their bet and she had agreed to come home. “I bet on your luck.” Tsunade finally said in response to her visitor’s accusation.

Naruto sighed and settled back in the chair. “Stupid Baa-chan.” He grumbled but reached out for her hand and gave it a squeeze. “I don’t want to lose you.”

Tsunade chuckled, “Stupid Gaki, I won’t go so easily,” she said in return squeezing his hand back. “You are leaving today?”

Naruto nodded. “Sakura is finishing getting it ready. She promised to use the Bunshin-scroll to send me a message if there is any change.”

Tsunade smiled. Her second apprentice and protégé had really flourished since taking over most of her work at the hospital. “I will be fine. Shizune and Sakura won’t let me do anything risky. They probably won’t even let me drink.” She stated, frowning; the two would be a pair of regular mother hens.

She rolled her eyes at the skeptic look he still gave her. “I won’t do anything to put myself further at risk.” She sighed. “I don’t even have the chakra to consider it.” The teen’s frown deepened. “Oh it’s not that bad!” She defended.

“Shizune-neesan said you won’t be able to work at the hospital anymore.” He said quietly.

Tsunade flinched and looked down at where her hands rested in her lap. “She’s probably right. I drained all my reserves, and they take longer to regenerate each time. Another strain like this would probably kill me and I’m not likely to ever regain as much as I lost this time.” She looked up then, her expression steady and serious. “I will not remain an invalid, there are still things I can do even without using chakra.”

Naruto smiled.

“What will you tell your uncle?” she asked.

Naruto shrugged. “I don’t know yet. There is so much about that world I don’t really understand yet…”

Tsunade smirked, “You say that like you understand this one so well.”

“Hey!” The blonde teen pouted for a moment before both blondes laughed. “Yeah, well, I’ll manage.”

“I know you will.” Tsunade told him and chuckled again as he fidgeted nervously at the praise. “So, did you bring me any sake?” She asked hopefully.

Naruto rolled his eyes but handed the woman a small scroll that had been tucked away in his jacket. “This is from Shanks-oji’s private stock; he doesn’t know I pilfered it yet.” He explained and then glanced nervously at the doorway for a moment, “You know Sakura-chan and Shizune-nee will kill me if they find out I gave that to you.”

Tsunade only reached over to ruffle his hair.  “Don’t spoil it now, Gaki. I’ll be fine.”

Naruto met her gaze and held it for several heartbeats. “You promise?”

Tsunade remained silent for several long moments, “Naruto… I cannot promise I will be here forever, you know that.”

The blonde teen looked down and said nothing.

“But…”

The teen looked up slowly.

“I’m not going to leave just yet, I promise.”

The young man said nothing but then grinned and squeezed her hand tightly once more. “Good.”

The older blonde smiled, "I'm proud of you, you know."

"Baa-chan..."

"That old pervert would be too," She continued, smirking as the young man practicality glowed, "as well as Sarutobi-sensei and your parents."

The teen blushed and fidgeted, “I just… I wish Ero-senin had lived to see the end of the war.”

Tsunade gripped his hand and squeezed reassuringly. “Wherever that old pervert is, I’m sure he saw you bring his dream for this world into reality.”

Naruto returned the squeeze and smirked, “I’m thinking of getting his books published in that world.”

Tsunade froze and looked at him in horror. “You…”

The teen snickered. “Come on, Baa-chan. I’m very aware of how he worked his information network with his publishers. To not make use of what he left me, especially with the chaos that world is in…”

Tsunade sighed in exasperation. “If I learn you have taken up his habit of spying on bath-houses, I will kill you.”

Naruto chuckled. “I think Sakura-chan would save you the effort.”

“Then I’ll have her heal you so I can kill you again.”

Naruto actually blanched at that. “I promise to not start spying on bathhouses, Baa-chan.”

“Better not, Gaki.” She grumbled.

Both fell into silence for several long moments. “You better not forget to come back and visit.” Tsunade said breaking the silence.

“Of course; who else would call you Baa-chan while I’m gone?”

“Gaki…” she growled in warning, but the teen only grinned.  Tsunade sighed, why did she even bother to keep trying to stop him from calling her that, when it had stopped bothering her long ago, anyways? “You will bring this Shanks to visit?”

Naruto nodded. “As soon as he is able to get away for a while without risk to those under his protection. He’s kind of like a pirate Kage, after all.”

Tsunade snorted at that. A knock at the door interrupted them as Sakura peeked in. “Sorry to interrupt, but it’s ready, Naruto.” She explained as she stepped fully into the room and presented a large scroll.

Naruto’s expression turned somber as he accepted the scroll. “Well, I guess it’s time then.”

“Remember your promise, Gaki.” Tsunade chastised.

Naruto smiled, “You too, Baa-chan.” And then in a golden flash he was gone.

“Idiot didn’t even say goodbye.” The pink haired young woman grumbled.

“Don’t worry, he’ll be back. The Gaki never goes back on his promises.” Tsunade said in response, relaxing back into her pillows once more.


	31. Song of Sorrow

Song of Sorrow

By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

“RED-HAIR! What did your nephew do with Ace?!” one of the Whitebeard Commanders shouted as he was held back by his comrades. 

“Shut up!” Marco yelled back at his nakama before turning to face the Red-Haired Captain. “But, the question still stands. We trusted your nephew with Ace’s body and now you tell us he hasn’t returned to your ship?”

Shanks grumbled. “It’s complicated.”

Marco frowned, not impressed.

“He likely took Ace to try and get him treatment, but I can’t explain where or how.” Shanks finally offered and shrugged.

“Ace was… is dead!” another of the Whitebeard commanders shouted. “We saw him fall!”

This time Marco didn’t bother to respond to his crewmates’ shouting.

It was at that moment that the Red-Haired Pirates all turned their heads, almost as one, to look back at their ship anchored just off the cost. They ignored the muttered comments of the Whitebeard Pirates as they silently watched and waited. It became clear what, or rather who, they waited for moments later as an orange-clad figure appeared on the ship’s deck. They watched as the blonde-haired form walked down the side of the ship and then across the water to the shoreline, approaching the gathered pirates silently. His head remained downcast as he carried a large scroll in front of him.

“I took him to the best medics I know.” The blonde said quietly as he reached the group. “They tried… we did everything we could…”

“Naruto…” Shanks whispered. The blonde kept his eyes downcast.

“I’m sorry. I brought… I thought they might want…” he tried to explain as he slowly set the scroll down and began to unroll it far enough to reveal a large section of seal work. Without a word, he knelt and pressed his palm flat on the paper and ink. The lines glowed blue, then released their hidden content in a soft _whoosh_.

A heavy silence covered the gathered group.

“I’m sorry… I should have taken him right away, but I thought I had bought him some time…” the blonde said quietly. “the… he didn’t, I mean… and his brother was right there…” At that his head shot up and his blue eyes searched for his uncle quickly. “Shanks-oji, Luffy!  Luffy was—”

Shanks moved toward his nephew and crouched down at his side, resting his hand on the blonde’s shoulder. “In the middle of it all, I know. He got away and was with someone who could give him medical care. Ace’s last wish, to protect his brother, wasn’t wasted.”

Another figure crouched down across from the blonde on the other side of the body of Portagas D. Ace.

Marco closed his eyes tightly for a few long moments before looking up to face Naruto. “Thank you for trying to save our brother.” He said with sincerity. “And thank you for bringing his body back to us.”

Naruto met the First Division Commander’s gaze then quickly glanced away, fidgeting with unease, before he nodded and stood up, taking a step back, his uncle rising and moving to stand beside him.

Uncle and nephew watched silently as the Whitebeard Commanders gathered and took up the limp form, carrying it back to the group and then further inland. There they would prepare to say their final goodbyes to two of the most precious people in their lives: their Captain and adopted father, as well as their fellow Commander and brother.

“Thank you.”  Shanks said softly to his nephew when the Whitebeard Pirates had all moved away.

Naruto fidgeted, uneasy with the gratitude.

“You did not have to fight, and you did what you could. That is what matters.” His uncle continued.

Naruto simply nodded as he watched the somber crew mourn. He only wished he could do more for them. He glanced to his uncle and paused at the serious look on his uncle’s face.

“I’m sorry I didn’t get Luffy out of there.” He said quietly.

Shanks turned to his nephew in surprise but then smiled softly. “Luffy had others looking out for him. That kid… you can tell me about what you saw there later on. I found my old hat laying on the ground when I arrived.” He looked skyward for a few moments. “Made sure it was returned to him. Would have been good to see Luffy again, but…”

“Your promise, right?” Naruto asked.

Shanks nodded. “What Luffy went through… what he did for his brother… was so like what Roger would have done for his crew; but to have Ace die right in front of him…”

“Luffy is strong. He’ll be okay.” Naruto stated.

Shanks blinked in surprise. “You got to meet him?”

Naruto shrugged. “Not really, but my clone saw his arrival at Marineford and everything up to when Ace took that hit. He will overcome this. Oh, and you will probably want to kill Mihawk, he tried to take off Luffy’s arms.”

Shanks stilled and the air filled with tension. “Hawkeyes went after Luffy?”

Naruto nodded, “Yeah; cocky bastard even mumbled an apology about not holding back before he did it.”

The tension rose further and then, just at the point where it seemed his uncle might snap, it was gone. Shanks sighed. “He tested Luffy’s luck, and it seems Luffy’s luck won.” The red-haired man chuckled. “Shouldn’t surprise me with his own interest in Luffy’s first mate; the fact that Roronoa follows Luffy and yet strives to surpass Hawkeyes means Luffy himself will have to meet Hawkeyes’ challenges as well. Mihawk never did like the obligations of a crew holding him back.”

Naruto remained silent, not sure what, if anything, he could say.

.:o:.

_The various pirates who had called themselves allies, friends, sons, and daughters of the Yonko Whitebeard honored his passing in a myriad of ways that showed, more than anything, how rich Edward Newgate’s life had been with the treasure he had held so dear. For some, it was a somber, quiet affair. For others, it was lost in a sea of tears, cries of pain, and sorrow. For still more, it was the celebration of a life and all that they had shared. Throughout the event, the former Division Commanders of the Whitebeard Fleet could be seen drifting from group to group, or in turn having different groups drift to them.  There were noticeable holes left in the collection of Division Commanders and their subordinates, however, for not only had the Fourth Division Commander been lost to Teach’s treachery, but the more recent loss of Ace in the Second Division left an open sore that could not be ignored._

_Off the shoreline and separate from the various gatherings, the silent form of the Red Force watched and kept guard, giving the children of the fallen Yonko the space they needed to mourn as they required, but honoring their fallen rival with their presence._

.:o:.

Marco’s heart ached as he watched the interaction between nephew and uncle. The family connection was obvious, and even though he still had hundreds of brothers from the crew, three incredibly close ties had been torn away in such a short time. He turned back to face the monument that had been made for Whitebeard, and the smaller one beside it that was still being finished for Ace. His heart clenched but he refused to break down; his brothers needed him to be strong. He glanced at the nephew and uncle pair who were standing a ways off, respectfully giving the Whitebeard Pirates the space they needed to mourn. They owed Red-Hair a lot for what he had done to help get them all out of the war; not just to allow them to escape, but to take the body of Whitebeard with them without fuss.

And then there was Ace… Marco had seen the look that passed between Whitebeard and the blonde teen. It had given him a bit of hope when the teen had stated he was taking Ace; hope that just maybe it wasn’t too late for the Fire User after all. He had known though, as soon as the blonde teen had appeared on the Red Force, his entire body showing a subdued sorrow, that it had been too late.

He wondered then about that golden energy that had surrounded the teen. He had felt it winding amongst the feathers and flames of his phoenix form. If he was to use one word to describe it, it was life. There was something bright and potent, even addicting about the feeling of it, and had it not been in the middle of a fight, the instincts of his Zoan would have likely drawn him toward it just as they often did with large fires. He wondered what that energy had made of Ace’s dying fire, if it had tried to keep it alive and been unable to.

Marco contemplated how that may have felt for the one the golden energy had come from, and if it felt anything at all like what it had for himself. He considered if, in those moments, Naruto had known Ace as well as any of the Whitebeard Pirates, or maybe even Ace’s younger brother. The blonde teen had looked so worried, so weighed down, and Marco found himself musing over just what the blonde had lived through before his sudden appearance at his uncle’s side.

He was reminded, in a way, of the weight he had often sensed lurking on Ace’s own shoulders despite his attempts to hide it and act carefree. He found himself thinking, had they had the chance, Naruto and Ace would have likely been close friends; brothers themselves, even. Yet another bit of life that war had killed.

The Phoenix watched silently as nephew and uncle finally approached the monuments themselves, and as the pair paid their respects, his attention focused once more on the pain of what they had lost. _Oyaji…_ He had sailed so long with the pirate that was, in so many ways, larger than life. He would not be who he was today if Whitebeard had not taken him underwing all those years ago. He had known this day was coming. Had known going into the war that his adoptive father would choose death on the battlefield if it meant saving the crew… saving Ace. That Ace had fallen before the world’s strongest man had been the final piece falling into place. Marco knew as soon as Ace fell, that Whitebeard would die taking as many marines as possible with him in retribution.

Marco had been prepared for this possibility, and Whitebeard had made him promise beforehand, that he would not seek vengeance for him if he fell, that he would focus on getting his sons, Marco’s adopted brothers, out alive. Knowing of the likelihood of it ahead of time had not made the reality any easier. He had nearly failed. The loss of Ace and Whitebeard had hit him hard and the Marines had not been forgiving. Shanks’ timely arrival had saved hundreds of the Whitebeard Pirates and allies that day. He stepped forward to stand beside the uncle and nephew pair.  “I don’t know how to thank you, Red-Hair.”

There was a long pause before Shanks answered. “Don’t mention it. Rival or not, Whitebeard was a man who commanded respect. Even Sengoku felt that way.”

Marco said nothing as he studied the pair for a few moments. The blonde stepped forward crouching down, resting a hand gently on each of the two monuments for a moment before rising and stepping back.

“Well, we’ll be going now.” Shanks said.

“Yeah, Thanks.”

Naruto stayed behind a moment longer and met the gaze of the Phoenix steadily. “Take care of yourself, Bluebird-san.” Naruto said as he turned to follow his uncle, smiling softly.

Marco blinked and couldn’t help but smiling back for a moment. “You too, kid.”                            

.:o:.

_It was after the Red Force had disappeared on the horizon when the suggestion was made to dedicate the two Commander-less Divisions to the island they had forever marked with their Captain’s memory that the wounds of loss began to heal.  Those who were ready to settle down could transfer to either Second or Fourth Divisions and provide guardianship and defense for the island against those who would seek to vandalize the memory of those now gone. Those who were not ready to retire from piracy would shift into the other Divisions to replace those staying behind. New purpose had been found, a hope for the future, and a need to honor and defend their own fulfilled._

_It was the allies who were first to slowly split off and set sail once more, promising to remain friends, to call upon or be called upon in need, but that they would move on seeking their own riches. Those remaining watched them go, but were not yet ready to continue sailing on themselves, the wounds still too raw.  Then came the reports of territories and islands claimed by Whitebeard being overrun by others. The Division Commanders gathered and decisions were made._

_By the end of the third day only the Second, Fourth, and First Divisions remained on the island as life on the sea known as the Grand Line continued on._


	32. Aftermath

Aftermath

By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

A loud slurping sound reached Shanks’ ears as he approached his nephew on the aft deck. The blonde teen had been casually avoiding him since they had left behind the Whitebeard pirates and the island where the famous Pirate Yonko now lay buried. It was time to find out what was bothering his nephew so much. He settled down beside the teen without saying a word and picked up one of the cups waiting at his nephew’s side.

“Cup ramen?” he asked, reading off the package.

His nephew finished slurping his mouthful of noodles and grinned. “Ramen’s the best!”

“Favorite food?” Shanks asked.

“Of course! How can you not know what ramen is?! Ichiraku’s is even better though.”

“You’ll have to take me when we visit, then.” Shanks replied.

“You bet!” Naruto grinned and continued to slurp.

“So, what’s bothering you?” Shanks asked after a small pause. The slurping noise slowed and then stopped as silence filled the air.

“Whitebeard… he trusted me to take care of Ace, he didn’t actually say anything… but I knew... and then I let the Whitebeard Pirates down…”

Shanks had been afraid the teen would answer that way. “Ace gave his life to protect his brother. That was his choice. Marco told me what happened, and you did what you could. You deflected a direct hit from Akainu, even, or so I was told.”

Naruto shrugged. “That magma guy? He’s an asshole.”

Shanks laughed. “That is true. Looked like someone had messed up one of his arms pretty good when I arrived, though; seemed like it had been solidified into volcanic stone.”

Naruto scratched his head, “His arm did look like it hardened after I blocked his punch… but then some of the others kept him busy and I left with Ace.”

“Interesting,” Shanks considered, and then frowned after a moment. “I’m disappointed by the way.”

Naruto flinched and pulled away a bit nervously. “About...?”

“That transformation of yours,” Shanks answered, “there were no tails. And could you even call those little gold flares ‘ears’? Looked nothing like a fox.”

Naruto sat stunned. “Oh.”

Shanks arched an eyebrow at his nephew’s stunned expression.

“Guess I never thought about it. Before Kurama and I started working together… the bijuu chakra cloak was as self-damaging as it was a power boost. That one had tails but was nearly impossible to control. I… I nearly lost myself to it completely, once.”

Shanks frowned. “What… what lead up to that?” he asked, though he had a few ideas.

Naruto’s eyes glazed over as he turned out to the ocean. “Konoha… was almost completely destroyed… Kakashi-sensei… Shizune-neesan… I could no longer sense them. Nagato… he… he was another student of Ero-Sennin… and the one who killed him… and then… she said she loved me, and Pein killed her.” He whispered the last bit so quietly Shanks almost couldn’t hear it.

“Naruto…” Shanks breathed out, half-wishing he hadn’t asked. The blonde teen turned to face him and then smiled softly.

“It’s okay, Shanks-oji, it was because of that that I learned who my parents were. Thanks to my Dad, I didn’t give up, I defeated Pein, and I convinced Nagato that there were other ways to bring peace. He died then, using an ability to bring back all the people he had killed while attacking Konoha. In the end he believed in Ero-Sennin’s dream… you know… Nagato was an Uzumaki.. I wish… well, it’s too late now, I guess.”

Shanks reached over to ruffle his nephew’s hair. “You really are strong, you know that?”

Naruto smiled, but then turned serious once more. “Shanks-oji, about Luffy…”

Shanks smiled sadly. “I just have to believe in him, right?”

Naruto blinked and then smiled, “Yeah. Wish I had gotten a chance to really meet him.”

Shanks chuckled, “I’m sure you will, eventually.”

At that moment there was a loud shout from the main deck. A crewman appeared shortly afterwards with a paper clutched in hand. “Captain! You’re gonna to want to see this!”

Shanks accepted the paper and quickly scanned over the headline. Several moments later he began to chuckle. “I think Luffy will be just fine.”

He showed Naruto the paper. “Seems Rayleigh-san has taken an interest in him, and if my guess is right, this was done to send a message to Luffy’s crew.”

Naruto studied the image and headlines and chuckled. “Wonder just how badly they freaked out the Marines with that.”

Shanks shrugged, “It’s good for the Marines to get a good shake up. They get complacent with the rookies in Paradise.” He chuckled. “Luffy sure has given them a few heart attacks by now though. That kid… assaulting Enies Lobby and openly declaring war on the World Government, then breaking into and out of Impel Down… it’s a miracle the Marines have managed to keep so much of it out of the papers.”

“Why would they keep it out of the papers?” Naruto asked confused: weren’t such events a big deal?

“Because it makes the Marines look like the buffoons they are.” Benn chimed in as he approached and accepted the paper from Shanks. “So, the Dark King is still up to mischief. Seems Luffy has befriended Jimbei as well; those are some big names he’s keeping company with.”

Shanks smiled.

“Then again, Luffy did charm the Captain when he was only seven, so this shouldn’t be that surprising.” Benn teased.

Shanks spluttered and then pouted. “Not like he didn’t have the rest of the crew enthralled as well.”

Naruto snickered, “So does that mean you would join Luffy’s crew if he asked?”

The two older men froze and then turned to look at each other.

“He wouldn’t, would he?” Shanks whispered.

Benn chuckled as he lit a new cigarette, “He aims to be Pirate King; would you not follow such a man?”

Shanks sighed and shrugged helplessly.

“But no, I don’t think he’d actually ask. He did say he would surpass you and the crew after all.” Benn offered after exhaling.

Shanks smiled softly, “He did say that, didn’t he.” The red-haired man said as he looked out over the ocean once more. “Keep growing strong, Luffy, meet us at the top. We will be waiting.”

Naruto smiled at his uncle’s sentiment and then grinned. “I might have to go meet him myself if you keep getting all mushy and stuff.”

“Oh, you would, would you? And just how do you think you would find him?” Shanks asked.

Naruto shrugged. “I’ve felt his life energy once now, I can find it again.”

“Life energy?” Shanks asked puzzled by the new term.

“Not sure what else to call it, but I got a good read on a lot of people at that war with my clone and when I was there in the nine-tails form.  It’s not chakra, but felt kind of like it. The Devil Fruit users were easier to pick out, almost like they were giving off an aura of nature chakra themselves.” He explained then wrinkled his nose. “Kurama’s chakra seemed to really like Marco-san in particular; would have wound itself around him all day if I let it.”

“So that golden energy is Kurama’s?” Shanks asked, “And it liked Marco?”

“I think it’s the fire. Kurama’s primary element is fire, after all.” Naruto replied. “And it didn’t like Akainu’s magma… but that’s more earth-based, really.”

“What about Ace?” Shanks asked quietly.

“I tried to feed my energy to the sparks of fire I could still feel in Ace when I took him…” Naruto trailed off and turned his gaze down toward the deck.

“So that golden energy is a transformation, then?” Benn asked to turn the subject away from the lost D. Brother.

The blonde teen nodded. “Kurama and I work together when I’m in that form. It allows us to pull off some pretty awesome special attacks,” he explained, then after a moment frowned, “though the waves of negative emotions it leaves me open to kind of suck.”

“You can sense negative emotions while using it?” Benn asked, surprised.

“Yeah, it’s a talent of Kurama’s that I share in that form.” Naruto answered.

“And you used it at Marineford? That place had to be nothing but a boiling pit of negative emotions.”

The teen shrugged again. “Yeah, pirates and marines really hate each other it seems. Never felt anything quite like it before. The fourth Great Shinobi War united the Elemental Nations against a common enemy, and the fight was about survival, not an opposing faction we just hated.”

“So your force didn’t hate your enemy?” Shanks asked.

Naruto’s mind whirled back to the fourth war and all the tactics used by Akatsuki and its shadowed leaders. Hundreds of long-gone shinobi brought back as glorified zombies to fight against the living. Friends fighting friends, family fighting family… How did you explain that your enemy summoned up immortal long and recently dead legends and then forced you to fight against them? “It’s a long story …and … well… really complicated.” He finally answered.

Shanks and Benn both raised their eyebrows, but didn’t press for details when the blonde did not continue.

“Captain! We’ve just received word, Big Mom has claimed one of Whitebeard’s territories. Smaller Pirate groups of the New World have been reported raiding several others!” a crewman called back from the quarter deck.

Shanks expression turned serious, and yet sad. “The vultures are descending; time to get to work.”


	33. Sake Shenanigans

Sake Shenanigans

_By Silver Dragonfly_   
  


* * *

 

Shanks stared at the rows of sake bottles and frowned. He reached up and scratched his chin as he counted and stared. _Did I drink more then I remember?_ He wondered idly. It wouldn’t be the first time it had happened, after all, but somehow he didn’t feel that was the right answer. _Benn never raids my stash…. He prefers the wine anyways. Yasopp knows better and always complains that he’d rather have rum._ He considered the bottles and then sighed. Well, they would simply have to call in an order and make their way to the pickup sooner than anticipated. Then he paused as his eyes drifted back over the bottles again and he reconsidered.   _Could it be…? He wouldn’t, would he? Why would he?_ He hummed in thought. The blonde teenager had gone back home that morning, something about visiting a woman he called Baa-chan again. Maybe the teen had raided his sake stash after all…

He smirked. Well, if the teen wanted to raid the spoils he would have to help retrieve them. He turned and exited the store room, heading up to the navigation room. His smirk only grew as the crew glanced at him warily while he passed, a few edging carefully sideways out of his way as he approached the door. He pushed it open with a bang. “Benn! Call in a Sake order!”

Benn frowned, “Didn’t we just restock before the run-in with Kaido?”

Shanks pouted. “Someone raided my stock… or had a party without telling me.”

Benn blinked and then sighed. “I’ll call it in. It will be out of our way to restock there again so soon, though. Are you sure we can make the detour?”

Shanks smirk twisted into a grin, “Oh we won’t need to detour; I have the perfect delivery boy in mind.”

Benn arched an eyebrow and then chuckled. “As you wish, Captain.”

.:o:.

Blonde hair peeked out from a hatch followed shortly by the largely orange clad teenager. He looked around himself before his attention was drawn to the sound of his name from down the corridor.

“Ah Naruto, welcome back!” A crewman called out warmly. “The Captain wanted to see you as soon as you arrived. He should be up on deck or in Navigation with Beckman.”

“Thanks, I’ll go find him.” Naruto answered and winced slightly as he rolled his arm carefully.

Others called out greetings, some stopping part way through as they got a look at the blonde as he passed, casually waving at them, but offering no explanation to the staring crewmen as worried whispers spread.

Not spotting his Uncle on the deck, he headed up toward the Navigation room and opened the door before entering. “Shanks-oji, I’m back.” He called as he entered.

“Naruto, come have a seat!” The familiar voice from within answered, then silence filled the room.

Shanks stared at his nephew and slowly rose to his feet as he approached the teen studying him carefully from head to toe and taking note of every visible bruise, cut, tear, and scrape. “Naruto…” he whispered, “what the hell happened?”

The teen grunted and winced as another bruise made itself known. “Sakura,” He finally answered.

“Your girl—”

A dark stony blue stare cut off his words.

“I mean— teammate?”

The blonde teen nodded.

Shanks frowned and then hummed in thought. “Does this have anything to do with you raiding my sake?” He asked.

Blue eyes looked up in surprise. “Uhhh….”

Shanks chuckled. “I’ll take that as a yes. Well, have a seat and at least tell me it was worth it?”

The teen seemed to deflate as he sat down carefully. “It wasn’t for me, but for Baa-chan.”

“Which equals you getting beat up how?” Shanks asked as he sat, resting his elbow on the table and leaned his head on his hand, watching his nephew.

The teen’s mood dropped further. “Baa-chan… she….” He sighed. “I told you about her gambling and drinking habits before, but I never really explained who she is. Senju Tsunade, one of the Legendary Sanin and wielder of the Slug Clan Summoning Contract, granddaughter of the Shodaime Hokage. She is known as a master med-nin, and Sakura’s sensei. She made a bet with me when I was twelve years old, and lost, which then led to her becoming the Godaime Hokage though she’s passed the Hokage title on to the Rokudaime. She’s like the Grandmother I never had and even though she hates it when I call her Baa-chan… she’s family.”

Shanks had straightened and paid closer attention as the story started, sensing that there was something more to this than just a story about people he was close to.

“She led the surgery team that worked on Ace.” The blonde said slowly, his gaze going distant. “It lasted hours and hours…Ace’s Devil Fruit ability added complications every time they thought they might have him stabilized. Then… well it was over… and… she… she just… collapsed.” He said nothing more for several long moments then opened his mouth to speak again. “Sakura barely caught her, and she and Shizune went straight back into surgery, except Baa-chan was the patient this time.”

“She is okay?” Shanks asked cautiously when the teen said nothing more for several long moments,

Naruto blinked, but then nodded. “Sakura explained to me afterwards that she completely drained her chakra reserves and had started to draw on her very life force.  The surgery to save Ace… nearly killed her.” The blonde sniffled suddenly and quickly scrubbed the back of his hand across his face. “She woke up before I came back to deliver the body, and she promised she’d be okay, but… she won’t be able to ever heal like that again.”

Shanks reached out to clasp his nephew’s hand and smiled sadly. “Thank you, Naruto, for trying to save Ace, and I’m sorry it put your Grandmother at risk.”

The blonde nodded but then smiled, “She’s stubborn; even if Sakura-chan and Shizune-nee try to stop her, I’m sure she’ll still find a way to help at the hospital.”

Shanks chuckled then. “Sounds like family all right.”

Naruto smirked, “Yeah.”

Shanks raised an eyebrow, “So, what did this have to do with my sake?”

Naruto blinked and then laughed lightly, “Shizune-nee and Sakura-chan cut her off. She asked me to bring her some so I thought she might like to try some of your stash.”

Shanks began chuckling then, “and your Sakura-chan found out you gave it to her.”

Naruto shrugged but grinned before wincing as this stretched the bruised skin around his left eye.

“Some ninja you are, not even able to slip your old Baa-chan sake without getting caught.” Shanks teased.

Naruto glared. “You don’t know Baa-chan, or Sakura-chan. Just wait until you meet them Mister Badass Pirate Captain, then tell me that again.”

Shanks chuckled: his nephew was so prickly when it came to these topics.

At that moment Yasopp entered the room and ruffled Naruto’s hair as he plopped down on the bench beside the teen. “Just got off the Den Den with old Daniels, he says he has your order ready.”

Shanks perked up and grinned, “Jack always was good for filling our needs on short notice.”

Yasopp chuckled, “He also said the Island would gladly accept your offer, but he was a bit concerned about other crews making raids before you could finalize the deal.”

Shanks eyed his nephew speculatively. “Hmm; how long do you think it will take you to heal up a bit, Naruto?”

Naruto looked between the two and frowned, “Is there going to be a fight?”

Yasopp chuckled again, and Shanks grinned before answering, “Maybe, maybe not, but I can’t send you out to represent me looking like you just got spit out by a Sea King.”

Naruto blinked in surprise, “You want me to represent you?”

“Well, and pick up a rather large order of sake to help restock what you pilfered.” The redhead answered, grinning shrewdly.

Naruto flushed and mumbled an apology as Yasopp guffawed at his side. The teen shot the older blonde a dirty look before meeting his Uncle’s gaze once more. “What does representing you have to do with running errands?”

“You remember that island we picked up that big load of sake at?” Yasopp asked, still amused.

Naruto frowned but then exclaimed, “Ah! Where we met that lion-faced guy who was with some Big Mom?”

Shanks chuckled, “That’s right. They were under Whitebeards protection; now they are fair game to any pirate crew that lands there. I’ve offered to make that island one of my territories.” He explained.

“The catch,” Yasopp cut in, “is that the island needs the Captain’s Jolly Roger to put on display as proof, and we are weeks away.”

Naruto glanced between the two, “Well that’s easy enough: you know I left a marker at that island, Yasopp…” he drifted off as the dots connected and he stared hard at his Uncle. “So I’ve been demoted from nephew to errand boy?”

Shanks snickered, “I don’t see why they have to be separate things.”

Naruto glared.

After a few more chuckles, Shanks sighed, “The sooner the Red-Haired Jolly Roger is on display on the island, the safer the people living there are. Consider it a mission, if you must.”

Naruto brightened at that. “Well in that case…” He closed his eyes as his focus seemed to shift inward.

Shanks and Yasopp stared as golden energy flicked out around the blonde teen causing bruises and cuts to fade from sight.  Yasopp let out a low whistle, “Kid, you have more tricks then any trickster I’ve ever met.”

Naruto grinned and shrugged nonchalantly.

Shanks smiled, “Good. Go see Benn for the order payment and the flags to deliver to Jack – that’s the bar owner. If you run into any other pirate crews, feel free to make it clear just who the island now belongs to.”

Yasopp and Shanks watched as the blonde rose to his feet and quickly exited the room.

Yasopp leaned closer to his captain, “Are you sure that was a good idea? He could pick a fight with someone that’s not what we’d necessarily call a pushover.”

Shanks stared at his sniper and frowned. “Yasopp, I’m disappointed! You think a kid who can block a direct punch from Akainu without giving an inch can’t handle himself on such a trip?”

Yasopp blinked, “Marco really did say he did that, didn’t he?”

“And he kept up with Mihawk.” Shanks added.

“All right, all right, so unleashing the kid on unsuspecting foolish pirates might be overkill.” Yasopp said with a tone of sudden revelation.

Shanks grinned mischievously.  “Now you get the idea.”  


 

 

* * *

 

 


	34. Chapter 34

**A Pirate’s Pride**

_By Silver Dragonfly_

* * *

 

_So, you’ve been reduced to errand-boy now?_

Naruto stumbled and then quickly caught himself before apologizing to the woman he had practically collided with. He quickly slipped down a side alley and then grinned. _The sleeping fuzz-ball is awake so soon?_ A snort and growl followed his comment causing his grin to spread further. _I didn’t think you’d be awake again for at least a day._

_With all your jumping between worlds, I’ve had no choice but to adjust to the ripping and deluge of sensations that occur every time you cross back into this world of seas._ The Fox responded.

Naruto nodded. _Yeah, the natural energy of this world is something else. I’m glad to hear you are adjusting though._

_Yes, you would rather not have me spewing acidic chakra all over in your system again._

Naruto flinched at the mental imagery. The first time he had checked on Kurama after making a jump… the chamber that usually represented the seal had been in a very sorry state. Thankfully, this had only happened once, and Kurama had preferred to just sleep off the effects of ‘world-jumping’ as he called it. This was the fastest he had come awake after a jump, though. Then he recalled his partner’s words. _Hey, I’m not just an errand-boy! Benn was very specific about how important it was that the brewery and ports of this island all get Shanks-oji’s Jolly Roger on display._

If an eye-roll could be translated into a sound or simple feeling; that was the only further response Naruto got from his fur-covered friend.

.:o:.

Jack had been running his bar in the port town of Kome Shion Kome Izumi no Shima for many years: since before Gol D. Roger had been declared Pirate King. He intended to keep running his bar for a good many more, or at least until a new Pirate King was crowned. He suspected things would either get boring, or down right unbearable after that. What this really meant, however, was that he had met a lot of pirates in his years serving sake, wine, and other forms of alcohol. He even liked to supply for those pirates he judged of good character. This did not extend to the current gathering of unwashed, stupid, and ugly pirate posers that were now sprawled over benches, tables, and the bar after drinking his lowest grade (practically piss water) booze all afternoon.

The rabble had even had the gall to talk about taking over the island and claiming it as their own territory now that Whitebeard was gone. He had nearly laughed aloud at the audacity of it. If this lot tried to take the brewery, the Island Militia itself would pull them apart in seconds. After all, it was largely made up of former Whitebeard Pirates looking to settle down, or families of the crew. He was glad the Island Militia and Council had come to the decision they had regarding Red-Hair’s proposal. Otherwise, it was only a matter of time before the Marines found out about the former pirates and their families who sheltered here. He hoped the representative that Beckman had promised would arrive sooner rather than later.

“O-san! I came to pick up Oji-chan’s sake order!” A bright voice called out, shortly followed by equally bright blue eyes and blonde hair.

Jack grinned. “Ah, Naruto-kun, he has you running his errands again?”

The teen strolled through the bar with a casual shrug and an easy smile. “Saves time this way; oh, and I had some questions I wanted to ask.”

Jack raised an eyebrow and gestured for the teen to take a seat.

At that moment, one of the unsavory lot currently occupying the bar took notice and snarled. “Since when do you take orders, Daniels?! You told us you can’t keep the stock on hand for supply orders!”

Jack frowned and straightened. “Your Captain can’t afford the supply costs.” He finally answered, and it was true. The prices he would charge this lot were designed in just such a way as to dissuade them from making this a regular supply post.

“And this kid’s uncle can?” The drunken man snapped waspishly.

“Oi!” Naruto said in complaint, but was ignored.

“You’ve been holding out on us, Daniels, that’s going to cost you.” By this time the rest of the crew had taken note and all rose to their feet in one lumbering wave with snickering grins spreading their lips.

The Captain of the crew stepped forward, “Not a good idea to piss off those you look to for protection, Daniels.”

Naruto scratched his head in confusion and then turned to the old bar keeper. “Hey, O-san, aren’t you guys declaring this island as one of Oji-san’s?”

The bar keeper chuckled. “That’s right, Naruto, we have only been waiting on your uncle’s representative to make it official.”

“Oh, I see.” Naruto said with a bright grin. “Guess that’s me, huh?”

The older bar keeper returned the grin. “That’s right.”

“Quit joking around! No self-respecting pirate would send this kid!” The Captain snarled.

“What, did you… just… say?” Naruto asked slowly, a sharp edge clear in his voice.

The complete change in tone caught the disgruntled pirates’ attention as they turned to look at the blonde teen once more. His head was tilted forward causing his blonde hair to fall over the metal plate on his forehead and cast his eyes in shadow. Blue orbs gleamed from within the shadow and stared intently at the pirates.

The Captain sneered, “I said, your so-called uncle is a pathetic excuse for a pirate.”

The blonde raised his head once more, revealing slightly-slitted pupils and a snarl across his lips. “You can call me names all you like, but no one insults my family.”  A roll of fabric was tossed to the bar keeper. “O-san, make sure that gets put properly on display. Mind if I make use of the back yard?”

Jack smirked as he caught the rolled flag, “I’ll see to it right away, and the yard is yours.”

“Thanks, O-san.”

The gathered pirates, by this point, were gripping weapons and flexing in anticipation of the coming beating.

“You guys want to head out back, or do I have to toss you out there myself?” Naruto asked his voice still steady and unwavering.

The Captain sneered, “Lead the way, brat, we are going to enjoy this.”

The bar keeper watched with a small upturned corner of his lips as the teen led the group out the door behind his bar but choose not to follow them. Instead, he turned to pull an object out from underneath the counter. He glanced up at the sound of shuffling paper and noticed one of the pirate group remained at the bar shuffling through papers.

“Not going to join your crew?” Jack asked, curious.

The man glanced up briefly, scowling. “Unlike those lazy bastards, I have work to do.” He continued to shuffle through his stack of papers, “and there is something bothering me about that kid…”

Jack chuckled. “He has that effect on people. They can’t seem to help but notice him.”

The man snorted then glanced toward the doorway as the sudden sounds of a fight in full melee filtered in. He turned his attention back to the strange bar keeper who was now carefully taking down an old-looking plaque bearing the Whitebeard Pirates’ Jolly Roger. “Taking down your old patron’s mark so easily? I had thought you’d put up more resistance. The Captain will be pleased to see you have changed your mind.”

Jack smiled as he glanced back, “Oh I’m not giving in to your Captain’s request. Another old patron left me a plaque to replace this one with years ago. At the time I had to apologize that I would not be able to put it up, but the time has finally come that I can.”

The pirate rolled his eyes and flipped back to his papers before looking towards the back doorway once more at the sound of several thuds hitting the back of the building. “Not even a little worried about your blonde friend?”

Jack only carefully fitted the new plaque up without turning and answered, “Aren’t you even a little worried for your Captain and crew?”

The pirate chuckled and looked towards his papers once more, “Why should I worry about… _Shit_.”

Jack turned around with a grin, the new plaque with its Jolly Roger of a skull over two crossed swords and three reds slashes across the left eye socket now hung in place. “Ah, found the kid’s bounty poster finally? The new one is something.”

The pirate looked up at the bar keeper, his eyes wide as his gaze traveled to the plaque and then back down to the poster now clutched in his hands. He scrambled to his feet, bar stool clattering to the ground in his haste. He rushed toward the door only to skid to a stop as he nearly crashed into the blonde teen as he came back in.

“Careful there, almost ran into you.” Naruto said cheerfully before his attention was then caught by the paper clutched in the man’s hands. “Whoa! Is that—!? Can I see?!”

The man gulped, handed the piece of paper over slowly, and quickly took several steps backwards until he was against the wall.

Naruto ignored him, though, as he bounced over to the bar-counter, a huge grin on his face. “This is awesome! I wonder if Shanks-oji has seen it yet. Hey O-san, have you seen the new poster?”

Jack smiled, “Ah they just came out with this morning’s news. Just what sort of mischief have you been up to?”

The teen scratched the back of his head and chuckled. “Oh, a bit of this and that; nothing special, really.”

The bar keeper raised a brow and shook his head. “Between you and that Straw-hat kid, the Marines must be pulling their hair out.”

Naruto leaned forward excitedly. “There’s been news about Luffy!?”

The bar keeper shook his head and pulled a paper out from below the counter to lay out for the teen to see. “New posters were in today’s newspaper, the kid made another visit to the battle site and made a spectacle of himself. The company he had with him is rather intriguing as well.”

Naruto stared down at the paper and grinned, “We saw the news about his reappearance at Marineford, but Shanks-oji will be happy to hear about the bounty poster.”

The bar keeper smiled at that; he had thought the straw-hat the kid wore was familiar.

“Can I keep this and the posters?” Naruto asked.

“Sure.”

A whimper from the doorway drew their attention as the man who had been left forgotten looked out the door into the backyard.

“Oh yeah, you’ll want your militia to pick them up to collect the bounties.” Naruto suggested with a snicker. “They are all gift-wrapped and ready.”

“Very kind of you.” Jack replied as he chuckled at the other man’s stricken expression.  “If you choose to make trouble, you will join your friends out back.”

The man gulped and then, while glancing nervously at the blond teen he quickly edged his way out of the bar and disappeared from sight.

“He’s not going to be a problem for you later?” Naruto asked, frowning slightly.

Jack scoffed, “He’s a small fry. We can handle it here on the island.”

Naruto grinned then bounced a bit on his feet in building excitement. “O-san, do you have any ramen places on the island?”

Jack raised an eyebrow but mentally shrugged, “There is a good place down in the port. It’s right near the port side market.”

“Great!” The teen cheered. “One other question, are there any publishers on this island?”

The bar keeper blinked in surprise. “Publishers?”

The teen grinned widely, his eyes sparkling. “I want to get a popular series from back home published here.”

.:o:.

There was a bright gold flash and then the familiar voice of the Captain’s nephew rang out across the ship. “Shanks-oji! Benn!”

Both of the older man stepped out from the navigation room, “Naruto, what is it? Did something happen?”

The blonde teen rushed across the deck, papers clutched tightly in a waving hand. “I’ve got a new bounty!”

Shanks mouth spread wide in a grin as he laughed and Benn smirked at his side. “It’s about time!” The Red-Haired Pirate stated with a grin while waiting for his nephew to deliver the papers. “What’s it say?!”

Benn plucked the papers from the eager teen and turned his back to his Captain to keep the Red-haired man from snatching them away as he began to read aloud. “Wanted, Dead or Alive, Uzumaki Naruto, the Orange Ninja; Four hundred and sixty-five million Berries.”

There was a chorus of loud whistles and cheers as soon as the value was read aloud.

Shanks smirked and reached out to ruffle Naruto’s hair. “Not bad, kid. Not bad at all.”

 


	35. Shadow and Memory

**Shadow and Memory**

_By Silver Dragonfly_

* * *

 

Small fists pumped as short legs carried him as fast as they could through the never-ending dark alleyways and streets. Shadowed figures stood in windows, doorways, and along the rooftops. Everywhere, he could hear the all too familiar hissing whisper of voices.

_Demon child._

_That child shouldn’t be allowed to live._

He ducked into a shadowed doorway and froze in place as he stared inside at all the people sitting at the various tables and countertop.

_“If the Pirate King had a son?”_ the words fell from his own lips though he could have sworn he never heard them before in his life.

The people in the bar roared.

_Such a creature should never be allowed to exist!_

_The child must pay for the crimes of his father!_

_The child of a Demon is a Demon!_

Naruto bolted upright, his hammock swinging wildly with the sudden motion; blue eyes staring out wide-eyed in the darkness of the cabin, sweat quickly cooling on his skin.

He quickly swung his legs over and hopped out of the hammock, pausing to make sure none of the other sleepers were disturbed as he slipped out of the cabin and moved toward the bow. He glanced around briefly before making the quick jumps to land on the figurehead and then settled himself.

It had been a long time since he had been bothered by dreams of his childhood; it was usually the war that haunted him and the memories of those friends that had been lost.

_It wasn’t just your memories._ The rumbling voice of the fox stated.

Naruto blinked but then took a deep breath as he anchored himself and let his consciousness drift inwards. When he opened his eyes once more he smiled at the sharp vulpine grin that greeted him.

“Sorry if I woke you.” Naruto apologized before approaching the fox and settling himself against the large fox’s chest between his paws.

The fox huffed.

“You said it wasn’t just my memories, but how could I get someone else’s….wait… Ace?”

_My thoughts are of that nature as well. I believe it is a side effect from flooding his body with our chakra and feeding his devil fruit core - that flame deep in his center - that has led to this._

“Does this mean he would have my memories…”

_I do not know. It is likely that he would be affected in a similar fashion._

Naruto sighed. “He didn’t even have an actual demon in him and they called him that….”

The large fox shifted and dropped a paw heavily onto the blonde. A muffled “Hey!” and muttered curses could be heard before the orange clad figure struggled out from under the furry appendage.   
  
“All right, I get the idea. No need to be so touchy about it.”

_If you continue whining I will bite off your head and put us both out of your misery._

Naruto opened his mouth to reply but then froze and turned toward the shadowed opening that served as a door into the seal chamber of his psyche.

_Someone is coming._ The large fox hissed.

Naruto nodded and began to fidget as a familiar figure appeared in the chamber opening and then entered.

Brown eyes framed by vibrant red hair glanced at the teen where he lay against the large paws and then looked upward.

“Shanks-oji…” Naruto whispered, eyes wide as he stared at his uncle.

_So this is the little brother of my second host._ The fox drawled and gave a vulpine sneer. _It is fortunate they selected her and not you as my would-be jailer. I would have destroyed you._

The Red-Haired pirate arched an eyebrow and then chuckled. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Kurama-san.” Then the older man bowed. “Thank you for looking after my family.”

Silence filled the room and then the fox rose to its feet and snarled, tails lashing. _You are more the fool than I suspected. Did the Gaki not tell you that your sister is dead because of me? I am the sole reason for her death!_

The Red-Haired pirate did not flinch as the angry breath of the fox washed over him and set his hair into motion.

“Would Naruto still be alive if you had not been with him during the War that was so recently finished back in the Elemental Nations?”

The fox snorted but then seemed to consider the words and glared.

“Kurama…” Naruto breathed out quietly, his hand resting on the leg of the large red fox, but the blonde teen was ignored.

Several long moments passed as the large fox and pirate stared at each other, neither flinching nor giving ground.

_No, he would not. Nor would I or any of my brothers and sisters still live. The entirety of the Elemental Nations would be in ruin if Naruto had not been my host._ The fox finally responded as he settled down once more, acting as if nothing at all had bothered him moments before.

Shanks smiled. “So I thank you, Kurama-san, for looking after my family and in turn, allowing us the chance to meet once more.”

The fox snorted. _Whatever doubts I had that you were in fact a relation to either Naruto or his late mother and my second-host, are dismissed. There is no doubt Yonko Red-Haired Shanks, you are in fact Uzumaki._

Shanks laughed.

Naruto glanced from the fox to his uncle and breathed out slowly. “Not that I’m not happy you two got to meet… but Shanks-oji, how did you get here?” the blonde asked.

Shanks blinked. “I followed your haki.”

“Huh?” the blonde muttered his face blank.

Shanks chuckled. “Observation Haki, I can sense your spirit or will. When I found you meditating on the figurehead and sensed all your spirit focused near your center, I decided to try and reach out to you with haki. I found myself here.”

Kurama chuckled. _Typical. The Uzumaki have never been predictable._

Naruto grinned while Shanks also chuckled.

“So, how do we leave?” The Red-Haired Captain asked.

Kurama grinned. _Like this._

Naruto groaned as he reached up to rub his forehead and slowly blinked his eyes open, adjusting to the early dawn light. “Stupid fox: knows I hate it when he does that.”

Another groan behind him quickly drew his attention.

Blue eyes snapped open wide in panic. “Shanks-oji! Are you all right!?”

“What a dirty trick.” The Red-Haired man groaned. “Feels like a hangover and I didn’t even get to drink anything to get it!”

Naruto’s shoulders slumped in relief. 

The Red haired captain leaned back so the two sat resting back to back. “Is he always so testy?”

Naruto smiled, “Yeah… but it’s mostly for show.”

_I heard that._ The fox muttered in a grumble. Naruto ignored the response and kept his attention on his uncle.

“So he blames himself for Kushina-neesan’s death.”

Naruto turned his head to look back over his shoulder but then nodded. “He tries to hide it, but he does; even though it really wasn’t his fault. It’s true my mother would not have been attacked that night if she had not been his jinchuuriki, but someone else would have all the same. His extraction would have led to her death and I can’t really blame him for not wanting to be imprisoned again. He lashed out, my parents got in his way while protecting me.”

Shanks nodded, as if he had expected as much. “And what he said about you being his host during the last shinobi war?”

Naruto fidgeted. “If my parents had been alive… there’s no real way of knowing how much that would have changed things. I… I just did what I felt I had to do. I never went into the war trying to be a hero... they tried to keep me out of it, actually. Tried to protect me and Killer Bee, the Gyouki’s jinchurriki, and keep us safe. I wouldn’t let them die for me while I hid in some cave.”

Shanks smiled at that. “And that is probably a big part of why your fur-covered partner said what he did.”

The teen smiled lightly and leaned back further resting against his uncle’s back. Silence held between them for several long moments as they just sat, back to back, watching the sun rise and spill its light across the ocean, reaching its fingers slowly up onto the deck of the Red Force.

“So,” Shanks said after several long moments, turning to stare at his nephew with his scar marked eye. “What do you say to a bit of a field trip today?”

Naruto turned so he could face his uncle. “Field trip?”

Shanks grinned, his expression taking on a feral glint. “Ah, I need to have words with a certain acquaintance about trying to kill Luffy, let alone the death threats made against my nephew.”

Naruto blinked and then his eyes widened. “Hawkeye?”

Shanks grin twisted into a smirk. “You still have him tagged?”

Naruto’s expression shifted into a matching smirk. “You bet.”

From across the deck Benn breathed out slowly, smoke wafting up on the morning breeze as he watched the uncle and nephew pair. Beside him, Yasopp cringed before muttering, “I really don’t like it when the Captain gets that look on his face… and now Naruto has it too… this is going to mean trouble.”

Benn chuckled. “Not ours to deal with for once. Captain wants to drop in and visit Mihawk.”

Yasopp blinked. “But it would take us weeks to get there.”

Benn exhaled a long trail of smoke once more. “Not if he gets Naruto to take him.”

Yasopp blinked again, then his eyes widened. “Oh to see Hawkeye’s face!”

Benn chuckled as he finished off his smoke, “Like I said, the trouble they are planning won’t be ours to deal with and I’m sure Mihawk will manage to survive the visit.”

Yasopp snorted at that.

Suddenly, there was a startled yelp followed by a shriek and splash from the bow of the ship.

Benn and Yasopp stared.

Overhead the lookout called out, “Captain and Naruto overboard!”


	36. Uninvited Visistors

**Uninvited Visitors**

_By Silver Dragonfly_

* * *

 

As the seconds turned into minutes, and the minutes piled up like sand reached an hour, Mihawk found himself feeling the ease of the tension that was his constant companion. The constant tension was, in fact, why he had chosen this island as his harbor and home. The island of Kurigana and the fallen kingdom of Shikkearu was quiet, gloomy, and no longer inhabited by any human besides himself. It took the very determined to travel to this place before they could disturb his tranquility. The entire atmosphere of the island and its isolation made it ideal for his purposes. The human drills, who were the only natives left living on the island, had recognized his strength long ago and generally left him in peace, despite his frequent traveling. These facts all together gave him the solitude he so often preferred.  Unfortunately, this peace was now shattered daily, if not hourly, much to his annoyance and displeasure.  If Bartholomew Kuma was not a fellow Shichibukai, and now more machine than human, Mihawk would consider killing the man. When the large man had cryptically informed him that he had sent him some packages, he had never guessed at the meaning behind that statement.  He should have known better.

Now, his island was host to two others besides himself, and neither was tranquil, nor quiet. Roronoa may have been pleasant enough company, he was a fellow swordsman and he had a spirit that showed promise, but the younger man constantly made noise. Smashing that and then breaking this, cutting left, right, and more with his Santouryuu style. Then there was the snoring when he was not conscious. The teen snored loud enough to wake the dead and that led to his other houseguest, the girl. She was whiney, she cried, she wailed, and worse, she nagged. The only saving grace was that she had self-appointed herself Roronoa’s caretaker and so she nagged the younger man more than she even considered nagging the Warlord himself. So, because of his uninvited house guests, he had been missing the peace and de-stress time that he normally enjoyed while at his home.

Today, however, that had changed once more. Roronoa had finally had some sort of breakthrough and the sound of his dueling with the human drills had moved out of his acute hearing range in the manor. The younger swordsman’s complete lack of restraint and care for his own well-being continued to bother the girl, and so she had gone after the green-haired teen. They had left Mihawk alone in his home at last. The tension faded like a shed cloak as he settled into his favorite chair with a fresh bottle of wine and a book he had been meaning to read for some time. He should have known better.

It started with a faint tickle against his senses that had his eyes snapping up, and over to where his hat rested on a nearby table. There was a faint surge of building energy followed by a brilliant yellow flash of light and a faint swish of displaced air. Before the burst of light had fully faded, noise filled the room.

“I can’t believe you dunked me!”  Mihawk’s gaze narrowed sharply. He knew that voice, he knew it well.

“You tried to dunk me first!” the edges of his lips turned down in a frown. The owner of the second voice would be one of the newest members of his list of ‘People who vex me that I cannot out-right kill.’ He twitched as he noticed the damp puddle forming on his rug below the red-haired pirate.

“That’s not the point! You dunked me and you aren’t even wet!” The older of the pair whined.

The blonde snorted then paused and blinked at the dark sword blade that appeared at his throat. His gaze traveled up the blade to the owner of the sword and the intense gold eyes staring at him. He laughed nervously, “Nice to see you again, Hawky.”

The blade kissed the skin at his neck creating the faintest line of red.

“Mihawk.”

It was only his name spoken by the Red-Haired Yonko, but the tone and intent behind it said so much more.  He let his golden eyes travel the small space from nephew to uncle and inwardly sighed at the piercing brown gaze that met his own. He casually removed his sword from its place against the teen’s neck and sheathed it once more. “Your nephew is a pest.”

The brown gaze didn’t shift. “Such a sour face; you had plenty of time to suspect such a thing after you tested him.” Then the eyes sparked with mirth. “Unless you are trying to tell me that your skills of observation are fading? Are you getting old, Hawkeye?”

Mihawk snorted. The redhead always liked to rub it in that he was the older between them, despite their shared birthdate. “It will not happen again.”

Shanks chuckled wryly at that, and then paused, his eyes narrowing. “You have guests, Hawkeye?”

At the question the Shichibukai all but groaned. Damn the redhead’s skill in Observation Haki. “Not marines.” He answered.

Shanks eyebrows arched at this and then he turned to his nephew. “Naruto, why don’t you go find out just who Mihawk has here playing with his monkeys.”

Mihawk frowned but did not take his gaze away from the Red-Haired pirate who met his gaze in order to comment further. The blonde teen looked from one pirate to the other before shrugging. “Yeah, sure I guess. Umm, you two aren’t going to kill each other… right?” He asked a little nervously as he glanced between the two again.

Shanks chuckled with a sinister twist, “Oh, we won’t kill each other. Mihawk just has some things to explain.”

The Warlord rolled his eyes at his long time acquaintance’s theatrics. “Don’t kill all the ‘monkeys’ as your uncle put it, the main door is down the hall and to the left.”

The teen glanced between the two once more before turning to head down the hallway and out of sight.

“Oh, and try to not break any swords, it would be rather rude.” The Warlord added.

The teen turned to look back over his shoulder and stuck his tongue out at the two older men before vanishing from sight.

“He cares for you.” Mihawk stated after several moments.

Shanks smiled and finally let his gaze drift from the Warlord to glance back down the passageway his nephew had just disappeared down. “Yeah, he’s a good kid.”

“He’s a pest.”

Shanks chuckled.

“I will not be so forgiving if he tries that piggy-back trick a second time.” With those words, a small knife was thrown toward the hallway where the blonde teen had disappeared. There was a startled yelp followed by the now familiar sound of a destroyed clone.

Shanks snickered, “If only I could have seen your face when he revealed himself.” The redhead shook his head in amusement before his eyes met the amber gold of the master swordsman. His expression turned serious, “Hawkeye… you went after Luffy.”

Mihawk tensed briefly, so this was the heart of it then. “He showed up in the middle of a war.”

Shanks sighed loudly at that and settled down into the waiting open armchair. “I’m aware. We heard the reports coming out of Impel Down.”

Mihawk arched a single eyebrow in surprise.

Shanks smirked wryly, “Oh, so I do know something you don’t?”

Mihawk stared steadily at the Yonko before taking a long sip from his wine glass and waited. Akagami was never the most patient when it came to these things.

The Red-Haired pirate seemed to be in a rare mood however, as he said nothing more, just gazed at the Warlord who sat across from him.

Mihawk huffed before speaking. “He was not alone when he arrived at Marineford, Akagami, but neither did he have his crew with him.”

Shanks nodded, “I am aware, though how he recruited both Jimbei and Ivankov to his side is likely quite the tale.”

Mihawk snorted, “More than that. That kid had Whitebeard supporting him despite declaring his intent to be Pirate King within moments of arriving. His luck is uncanny and his ability to make allies is unsettling.”

At that, Shanks smirked. “He got to you too, didn’t he?”

Mihawk scoffed, “Don’t be ridiculous.”

“That’s why you tested him.”

Mihawk narrowed his gaze at the red-haired man. “A man who may yet one day be a worthy opponent has sworn to follow him; do you really think I would do any less?”

Shanks chuckled. “No, I suppose not… but I still think he got to you.”

Mihawk rolled his eyes and took a long drink. “If you aren’t here to nag at me for my encounter with Straw-hat, why are you really here, Akagami?”

Shanks leaned back in his chair, sliding a sake bottle out from a pocket in his cloak. He opened the bottle and took a long drink before resting his elbow on the armrest, the bottle hanging lightly from his fingertips. His eyes remained focused on the bottle in his hand as he considered his answer. “I wanted your impressions on Luffy.”

The Warlord frowned, “And?”

Shanks smirked and took another long drink. “What do the Marines know of Naruto?”

Mihawk settled back and stared at his longtime rival for some time before speaking again. So Straw-hat wasn’t the only thing on his old rival’s mind, he was somewhat surprised that the Yonko had admitted to it so easily. “This is unlike you, to be so direct.”

The redhead smiled and shrugged, but then turned more serious once more. “I’ve been hearing some odd bits of news, and I was hoping you might be able to shed some light on them. Perhaps I should rephrase my question, why do the Marines seem to know the name Uzumaki?”

Mihawk stilled at that, so he wasn’t wrong in his own suspicions. “A good question, but one I do not know the answer to. I had thought they seemed a bit too interested in that name and the symbol he wears when they questioned me about him.”

Shanks blinked in surprised at that. “They questioned you directly?”

The Shichibukai nodded, “After I arrived at Marineford in answer to their summons. They weren’t pleased that I was found in your company, so I had thought it may just be the upper management trying to yank on their leash, but… perhaps not.”

The redhead frowned and took another drink as he considered things.

“What do you plan to do?” Mihawk asked.

Shanks took another drink before smirking. “I plan to get drunk while you tell me what you think of Luffy.”

Mihawk let out a long sigh.

.:o:.

Naruto’s lips turned down in a pout as he felt the memories of his clone wash over him. Oh, he’d give Mihawk a reason to call him pest before they left this island, there would be no doubt of that, but for now he let the irritation slide as he settled into a comfortable crouch on top of the tallest tower of Mihawk’s rather gloomy home. His uncle wanted him to discover who else was here, so he had a job to complete. He breathed in and out steadily and within a few moments he opened his eyes once more, amber replacing blue and orange pigmentation shadowing the area between brow and eyelid. He turned his head slowly and smirked. There was something of interest going on to the east and he could feel one distinctly human chakra source, if civilian in amount, and one other, with slightly more in terms of chakra but something else mixed in tainting it. Well he’d find out when he got there.

With that decided, he leapt to the nearest tree branch and began traveling as only the shinobi of Fire Country truly could. He felt himself start to relax as he traveled through the trees the way he was used to doing in the forests of Fire Country. He liked sailing with his Uncle: it was new, interesting, and a complete change of pace from what he had been used to, but this— traveling through the uppermost branches like they were a path designed for his personal use— was the way he would always find most natural to travel.

The blonde slowed as the sound of clashing blades reached his ears and quickly ascended to the very top of a tall conifer. His amber hued eyes widened at the sight that lay in the clearing below. Arcs of nature energy in various hues flew through the air, originating from the blades of a swordsman as he battled the various monkey-like creatures that swarmed around him. He continued to watch in growing awe, realizing after a few moments that the nature energy that he was seeing wasn’t actively being controlled in any recognizable way. It flowed and flared as if in response to some secret commands from the swordsman at its heart, but it looked like nothing he’d ever seen done with nature energy before. His gaze narrowed, in fact, the man’s chakra network was that of a civilian… he wasn’t even using it at all.

“That’s…just wow…” he breathed out, stunned by what he was seeing.

It was then that something bounced off his side and he turned, surprised. A small white translucent floating blob grinned at him and spun in a small circle with a high pitched laugh.

The blonde blinked, and then blinked again. “G..gh.. GHOST!!!”  he yelped, as the small form flew at his face. He leaned backwards and then yelled again as he lost his footing and fell from his perch atop the tree, the ghost chasing after him.

There was a loud crash as dust and debris rose into the air.

The teen groaned as the last of his gathered nature energy filtered away and he then felt cool metal against his throat for the second time since arriving on this island.

“Who are you?” a gruff voice demanded.

Naruto blinked as his blue gaze locked onto the blade and traveled up to the hand and arm holding it. He blinked again. “Green hair…” The man frowned and the bladed pressed slightly closer to the blonde’s throat. Blue eyes blinked again as they studied the man holding a sword at his throat, “One…Two…Three… three swords…”

“I won’t ask again!” The man snarled a second blade moving in to hover over his chest.

“Well that’s not a very nice way to say hello.” The blonde laying in the bottom of his self-made crater replied. “Figures Hawky would have grumpy guests.”

The green-haired swordsman snarled and moved, then froze as the body he had been hovering over just a moment before dissolved into wisps of dusty air. He whirled as he heard a voice behind him.

“Green hair and three swords, green hair and three swords, why is this familiar…” the blonde muttered from where he now perched on the lowest branch of the tree he had fallen from just moments before.

“Uzumaki Naruto, the Orange Ninja.” A girl’s voice spoke quietly, but tensly.

The blonde turned with a grin, “Ah, you heard about…” he trailed off as he spotted the voices owner and blinked. “Pink Hair…” he blinked again and then squinted. She didn’t have the eyebrows… but, he hoped from his tree branch perch and landed before the one he was now studying. The pink-haired young woman took several steps back nervously.

“What are you doing!?!” She screeched as she tried to keep her distance.

The blonde suddenly leapt backwards, “AHHHH, someone cloned Sakura and Lee!!”

The green-haired swordsman frowned and turned to the pink-haired woman. “Oi, you know this guy?”

The pink-haired woman turned with a snarl. “Of course not!!! This is not cute at all! If you paid any attention you would have seen the bounty poster!”

The green-haired man frowned.

Naruto blinked as he glanced between the two, still bothered by the woman’s appearance that was a strange combination of two of his friends, then his expression brightened as he remembered where he had heard about a man with green hair carrying three swords. “AH! You are Luffy’s Swordsman!”

The other two turned to the blonde once more, both seeming to relax slightly.

“You know Luffy?” The green-haired man asked as he sheathed his swords.

The teen shook his head, “Not really. I met him briefly at Marineford, but didn’t get a chance to really say hello. Shanks-oji has told me lots of stories though, and Hawky shared a few from when he met him as well.”

The green-haired man frowned. “Shanks-oji? Hawky?”

The teen nodded. “They’re drinking buddies and rivals… I think.”

The pink-haired woman narrowed her gaze, “So it’s true then, you are the nephew of the Yonko, Red-Haired Shanks?”

Naruto grinned brightly at this. “Yep.”

Zoro looked from the pink-haired woman to the blonde in shock. “This guy is related to a Yonko!?”

“I’m telling you to pay attention to the papers! Idiot!” The pink-haired woman shouted back at the swordsman.

Naruto watched the two with amusement. “So you two are Hawky’s guests then?” He asked finally when the arguing came to a pause.

The swordsman snorted while the pink-haired woman rambled off about the cute gloominess of the island, but how un-cute those she was stuck here with were.

The blonde grinned, “Well then, pleased to meet you. I’m Uzumaki Naruto, shinobi and Sage of Mount Myoubukai.”

The swordsman smirked, “Roronoa Zoro.”

The pink-haired woman hesitated as she glanced between the two, “Perona.”

The blonde grinned at her, “You have a devil fruit, right?”

The pink-haired girl edged closer to the swordsman as she eyed Naruto cautiously.  “How do you know that!?” She finally demanded while using the swordsman as a shield.

“Your energy, it feels different.”

The girl sniffed haughtily. “I ate the Hollow Hollow no mi, I’m a ghost woman.”

The blonde tensed, “Did you say g… gh…ghost?!”

Perona eyed him careful and then leaned back with glee, laughing. “Oh, you don’t like ghosts?” As she spoke several floating figures appeared swirling around her and echoing her laughter.

Naruto stared wide-eyed and paled. “That…. That’s just...”

Zoro moved away from the cackling woman, “Creepy.” He offered and then ignored the woman as she began to screech at him. “You were at the War with Luffy.”

Naruto glanced warily at the pink haired woman who was still muttering and now floating, before turning his attention more fully to the swordsman.

“I was there, but I wasn’t really with Luffy except for a few minutes near the end.”

Zoro met his gaze steadily. “Tell me.”

Naruto raised an eyebrow. “You are his crewmate? First mate if what I’ve heard is true… why weren’t you with him?”

Zoro’s frown deepened into a scowl. “It won’t happen again.”

Naruto blinked in surprise, whatever answer he had been expecting, this wasn’t it. No excuses, no flinching, just an unwavering… promise, that his Captain would not be alone in such a situation ever again. Naruto smiled then, “All right.”

Perona watched the two young men settle down amidst the rubble as the blonde began to speak. She, however, kept her distance and had no intention of getting so comfortable around the blonde. She had been uneasy since she had recognized who the blue-eyed blonde was. She hadn’t really known what to think of the blonde Uzumaki when she had first learned of his existence from the bounty poster she had just berated the swordsman for not noticing. She didn’t know what to think of the whisker faced blonde now that she had met him in person either. As such, she had been quickly relieved and also surprised that Zoro had stepped forward, taking the blonde’s attention off of her.

The pink haired girl listened quietly as she thought about what to do and was somewhat stunned as Zoro asked, or rather demanded, the blonde tell him about the War and his Captain. She had been present when the papers had arrived with all their news about the War at Marineford. She had seen the quiet and tense reactions of the green-haired swordsman as he learned that his Captain had been at the war, alone, without his crew. She had wondered at his silence while she had read aloud about Monkey D. Luffy’s father, connections to Portagas D. Ace, and the death of that brother. The swordsman had said nothing, but had thrown himself into training that his body could barely handle. She had already lost count of the number of times she had dragged him back to the manor unconscious to bandage up, just so he could do it all over again when he next awoke. Perona had expected him to demand answers from Mihawk, but he had only begged for transport and then, later, two years of time to train. Yet, here, now, he asked for those details from a stranger.

She studied the blonde as he spoke of Straw-hat’s arrival at the battle and all those he had brought with him. The details didn’t matter to her, though; she had other things to worry about. Her hollow had been unable to touch the blonde when he was first found in the tree. The ghost had bounced off the blonde, literally, and she had not tried to hit him with one again. There were only two causes that she thought likely: Armament Haki, or Nature Chakra. The first was most likely, especially with someone from the New World, but he claimed the name Uzumaki. More so, he claimed the titles of Shinobi and Sage, those three things combined left a sinking feeling in her gut. And finally, the detail that her eyes kept straying to: the black concentric spiral on a red circle emblazoned on his jacket. It belonged with the name, like a ship belonged on the sea.

Her focus was brought back to the current conversation when the swordsman stiffened. She listened as the blonde quietly described how Portagas had fallen and went on to apologize for not having exact details about what happened to Straw-hat after that, as he himself had been trying to yet save Ace.

The green-haired swordsman remained silent as the blonde finished speaking. Perona fidgeted, not sure what she should do, and the swordsman had not once reacted in a way she expected when it came to the subject of his Captain. She was about to step forward when she heard his voice, quite, but steady.

“Thank you.”

The blonde smiled and nodded before speaking again. “So, why are you here beating up monkeys instead of looking for your Captain?”

The swordsman shrugged. “Captain said wait. Need to get stronger and this is as good a place as any.”

Naruto blinked and then suddenly burst into laughter. “I knew there was something about that photo! He sent out a message to his crew!”

Zoro smirked, bur then frowned, “Oi, keep that to yourself.”

The blonde waved a hand dismissively. “Yeah, yeah, Shanks-oji probably figured it out anyways. I would like to meet your Captain sometime, though.

Zoro chuckled, “In the New World.”

Naruto nodded, accepting the statement for what it was. “Ah! Let me give you this!” the blonde exclaimed as he pulled out a short dagger like blade with one long central point and two shorter points on each side.

“What’s this?” Zoro asked accepting the strange blade and studying it.

“Tri-pronged Kunai, a special one, actually.” The blonde’s voice turned more serious, “If you ever need help, or need to get a message to Shanks-oji, or even Mihawk; throw that into the air and I’ll come.”

Zoro frowned, puzzled. “How—”

“Throw it.” The blonde interrupted with a wry smirk.

The swordsman hesitated; studying the blade for moment longer then did as told. A golden flash filled the air as the blonde vanished. “Like this.” The blonde’s voice called from his new location yards away, the tri-bladed kunai spinning around a raised finger.

The swordsman grunted and accepted the blade as the blonde reappeared beside him. “Distance isn’t an issue?” he asked,

“Not really,” the blonde answered, “but it may not be so instant.” He finished with a shrug, and then suddenly stiffened, his eyes glazing out of focus. “I have to go.” And with no further warning there was a golden surge of energy and the blonde vanished.

“Flashy bastard,” Zoro grumbled after a few moments and no sight of the blonde returning. He glanced over at the pink-haired woman who stood staring at where the blonde had stood. “What’s your problem with him anyways?”

Perona snapped out of her daze with a sputter. “I don’t have a problem! He’s just not cute! Not cute at _all_!” She shrieked at the swordsman who was already turning away. She followed after him scolding him for his carelessness and lack of direction as he kept trying to head away from the manor. Her mind raced however. When she had been a young girl, still, her parents had sent her to spend a year with family. She had needed that year amidst those distant cousins, aunts, and uncles. For while she herself could not use it, she sensed it everywhere around her; and they had been able to help her train that ability. And now, they needed to know about Uzumaki Naruto and what she had sensed flowing through every pore of his being.

.:o:.

“Second shelf from the top, behind the shitty wine.” A voice spoke interrupting Zoro as he peered through the various bottles of booze. He looked up frowning. “Hawkeye doesn’t know that I know where he keeps the good stuff.” The red-haired man said with a wry grin.

Zoro paused, but then looked where directed and grinned. “Thanks.” He muttered as he popped the cork off his prize. He eyed the other man carefully as the redhead entered the room and pilfered a separate shelf before stepping back with a bottle of what he recognized as fine sake.

“You know Hawkeye has come to visit me more and more since Luffy set sail. Thought it was about time I returned the favor and visit him. I wasn’t expecting to find Luffy’s First Mate as his houseguest though.” The red-haired man said casually as he settled down on a nearby crate.

Zoro stilled then sat down on another crate with a nearby barrel serving as a table. “I didn’t know Yonko were in the habit of visiting Shichibukai.”

The red-haired man chuckled. “Some do, though the Government’s leashed dogs do tend to get around more easily…Hawkeye would probably shave my beard for that.” He added in amusement, but then his expression turned more serious. “I’m glad to have proof that Luffy’s crew is not all lost. I worried after Marineford, you know, but Rayleigh-san seems to have Luffy in hand now.”

Zoro grunted but watched the other man carefully.

“What do you plan to do about your Captain’s request?” The redhead then asked.

Zoro frowned. “The blonde told you.”

Red eyebrows arched and the man chuckled, “No, haven’t seen my nephew since I sent him off to find you.”

Zoro smirked, “He was right then, he said you probably had it figured out.”

The Red-Haired man smiled. “And your answer then?”

Zoro grinned widely, a slightly feral spark in his eyes. “Get stronger.”

The redhead laughed. “Good answer. “ The man then rose to his feet, “Well time for me to be getting back to my own crew, where is Naruto anyways?”

Zoro blinked. “The blonde? Flashy bastard disappeared hours ago.”

The redhead stilled and closed his eyes for several heartbeats. Zoro took another long drink from his pilfered prize and nearly choked as the redhead suddenly yelled.

Eyes wide and an expression of complete shock on his face, he wailed “HE LEFT ME BEHIND!”

 

 

 


	37. Will of Fire

Will of Fire

By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

Eyes closed, Naruto reached out with his senses to find his teammate’s chakra as soon as the energy of his transport from the world of seas to the Land of Fire had dissipated. She had activated the kunai he left specifically with her to summon him. It required her blood. That she had needed to use it worried him. He found her energy and paused, then blinked. “Sakura-chan?” he asked surprised.

“Hello, Naruto.” The pink haired young woman answered from where she sat on a chair nearby, her arms folded across her chest and one leg crossed over the other. It was very obvious she had been waiting.

“You activated the blood seal.” He said, confused.

“I did.” She answered.

“But you aren’t in a fight… or at the hospital.” He added.

“Very observant,” she stated flatly. “Do you remember all that fancy sealing work you did in the Critical Care wing of the hospital?” She asked.

Naruto nodded slowly, not really sure where this was going, but all his instincts told him she was about to punch him in the face.

“That wing is on fire. I cannot put it out. Shizune-sempai cannot put it out. Kakashi-sensei cannot put it out.” She continued, her tone clipped and more agitated the longer she spoke. She rose to her feet, her fists clenching at her sides. “The only reason my fist isn’t in your face, is that nothing is actually burning.” She finished, and took a slow deep breath.

“It’s on fire… but not burning?” Naruto asked, now thoroughly confused.

Sakura narrowed emerald green eyes at him. “Fix it, Naruto. Fix it now.” With that order given she began to stalk toward the door, but then paused, turned on her heel and extended a hand, palm up expectantly. “The sake.”

Naruto flinched. “Umm I didn’t…”

“Don’t pull that on me, Naruto, I’ve known you too long.” She replied, eyes sparking. “Or do you want a repeat of our last discussion about you giving sake to Tsunade-shishou?”

Naruto blanched and quickly pulled a small scroll out of one of his pockets and handed it over.

Sakura eyed him critically and then nodded once. “I expect to have full access to the Critical Care Ward by tomorrow.”

Naruto muttered an agreement and wilted slightly as she exited his apartment with a slamming door. Silence filled the room as Naruto remained tense for several long moments.

_Fire that does not burn, how interesting._

Naruto groaned, of course his resident pyro would take note of that.  _Well, we better go check it out._ He mentally answered the fire-loving fox.

.:o:.

Naruto stared at the sight before him with wide eyes, amazed.

Scarlet, gold, amber, and brilliant white all intertwined in tongues of flame that flickered across the floor, walls and ceiling in intricate lines and swirls; the colors constantly shifting and in motion, dancing and crackling in the air as they moved over the invisible patterns they followed. The floor, walls, and ceiling were covered with the crisscrossing lines of living fire, but as Sakura had said, nothing was left behind in their passing. No soot, no scorch marks, just heat, light and sound.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Shizune asked from where she had come to stand beside the blonde. Naruto nodded, still too stunned to vocalize a response. “It’s a shame we can’t leave it, but it blocks off a huge part of this wing and though it doesn’t burn the building, anyone who tries to cross those lines gets an immediate trip to the burn treatment ward.”

Naruto winced slightly at that, but there was nothing he could do about what had already happened.

“I’ll do what I can.” He finally said quietly.

At his side, Shizune smiled softly. “You always do Naruto-kun. Good luck.” she said, before she turned back down the hallway to continue her duties.

 _It’s feeding off the seals and not even touching anything else._ Kurama commented as he studied the beautiful lines of fire that surrounded the corridor and doorway.

Naruto frowned, _No, it’s not just the seals…_ He stilled and breathed deeply and refocused his gaze on the seals themselves. _It’s the chakra in the seals… your… Our chakra._

 _Well you better figure out how to stop it if you don’t want your teammate to turn you into a pulp._ The fox responded wryly. _I wonder if we could make your bijju form appear covered in fire like that._

 _Vain fox._ Naruto admonished, though he had to admit, it would look pretty awesome; all nine tails with lines of fire trailing behind them in the air… _Kurama, can you channel chakra through your fur?_

 _Can you?_ Was the fox’s snarky reply.

Naruto remembered sparring with Ero-senin and getting spikes made from the old man’s hair through his foot. The Toad Sennin had bitched the rest of the day about the blood in his hair, but had taught him the basics of the technique. _Right… so fur essentially made of fire is a distinct possibility._

 _I like the way your imagination works, brat._ The fox almost purred.

Naruto rolled his eyes and stepped closer to the nearest lines, crouching down to study the patterns that crossed both floor and wall closer. _I don’t think just draining the chakra out of the seals will work…the fire might just start to consume everything else around it instead._ Naruto mused.

 _And earn you a severe beating from Pinky._ The fox chimed.

Naruto groaned inwardly, _I swear, if she ever hears that…_

 _You will pay for it, I know._ The fox answered with a snicker.

_Useless fox._

_Ignorant human._

Naruto decided to ignore the fox. They could go on for hours, and had, but if he wanted to fix the current problem and avoid Sakura’s ire, he’d have to save it for after.

He reached out carefully with a finger and rested it on the edge of where he knew the seal work to be, the flames ignored him. He frowned, Shizune had said it burned people, so why wasn’t it burning him? He carefully extended his hand into the fire and his eyes widened. The fire danced over his hand and around his fingers but did not burn. He focused on the feeling, but didn’t sense any loss of chakra to the fire where it touched him.

_We powered this seal with our merged chakra… what if I replace it with nature chakra?_

_Well, you might become a human torch, or the entire wing may blow up… let’s do that._ The fox’s tone picking up an excited flair. _We haven’t blown anything up in ages._

 _Yeah, not today, Fox._ Naruto responded, but the furball was right. He had already figured out draining the seal would be a bad idea, even if he tried to do it in controlled segments, the chances of it literally exploding in his face were pretty much absolute.

 _What if…_ He summoned three clones. With a quick nod, the one stepped across the lines of fire and then turned, shrugging.

“No damage Boss.” The clone said.

Naruto nodded. “You three know what to do then.”

There was a chorus of affirmatives as the other two followed the first and vanished down the hallway.

 _Ready, fox?_ Naruto then asked.

_If you insist on blowing us up._

_Don’t you ever trust me to not blow something up?_ Naruto responded as golden energy covered his form and immediately began to intertwine with the nearby flames.

 _Things are less interesting then._ The fox replied.

Naruto snorted but stepped across the line of fire. Immediately the fire coursed up his feet, legs, and swirled around his body, playing with the golden aura that surrounded him. He waited several heartbeats, but when nothing more happened he continued about halfway down the corridor before settling down onto the floor comfortably. He waited, and then sensed first one pulse, then two others.

He breathed deeply and slowly as he began to draw the familiar chakra flowing in the intricate seal work towards himself through the anchor point he now sat upon. As he pulled it out, he could feel equal amounts of Nature chakra being fed into the seals from the three other anchors that kept the whole matrix in place and stable.

Slowly, and steadily, guided by the rhythm of his heart, he continued; feeling the warm flames dance around him as the Nature chakra replaced the energies Naruto and Kurama had combined within the seals. It was slow and tedious, and something he would not have thought himself capable of doing at one point in his life. But he had learned to master the energy of Nature, and to be still. He had tamed his rage, and in turn, that of his partner. It helped that this was a place of healing, of hope, and not the desolation of a battlefield. Here he could take joy in what he felt and sensed and not have to fear the hatred and cost in blood.

He blinked slowly as the last of his shared chakra with Kurama pulled free of the seal as Nature chakra replaced it. He studied the hallway and smiled at the absence of fire chasing across the floor, walls and ceiling. He glanced down at himself and smirked at the site of the flames dancing all over him.

 _Now that you have it, what do you plan to do with it?_ The fox asked quietly, almost subdued.

Naruto blinked somewhat surprised at the foxes tone, then grimaced. _Uh…_

_Well it’s good to know at least some things have not changed._

It was at that moment, he noticed a familiar presence behind him as a page in a book was turned.

Naruto turned and then chuckled, “Hiding from your office already, Hokage-sama?”

“You don’t have to call me that, Naruto.” The man replied but closed his book and tucked it away.

Naruto smiled, “Whatever you say, Kakashi-sensei.”

The older man frowned. “I thought I told you, you didn’t have to call me ‘sensei’ anymore either.”

Naruto just grinned.

Kakashi sighed and then stood upright from where he had been leaning against the nearby hall and moved forward cautiously to study the flames dancing around his student.

“I have an idea… if you don’t have anywhere else to put that.” He said with a shift in the fabric of his mask that Naruto had long ago learned to recognize as a smirk.

The blonde shrugged, “Well I figured out how to get it out of the hospital… but not quite how to put it out yet, so sure.”

Kakashi chuckled. “Still our most surprising ninja.” The older man turned and opened a nearby window before disappearing out of it. Naruto glanced back down the corridor once more to make sure no one else was waiting before he followed.

Naruto should have guessed his old teacher would lead him out towards their old training grounds and to the memorial that waited there, but said nothing as he came up to stand beside his sensei.

“You can guide it into a seal again?” Kakashi asked quietly.

Naruto considered, “Yeah I think so. It is my and Kurama’s chakra that it is following.”

“Activate this then.” Kakashi said as he unsealed a large round rough-cut piece of polished flat black stone covered in carved lines and patterns. The stone fell into place on the ground beside the memorial and a feeling of anticipation filled the air.

Naruto’s eyes widened as he took in the carved markings. As far as seal work, it was minimal, but the words that surrounded the seal work struck a chord deep within;

 _"To those who possess the Will of Fire, everyone is family. The desire to protect one's family builds thicker and stronger bonds between each and everyone in the village. If the Will of Fire is embraced by everyone, the village will be alright no matter what happens."_ Words spoken by the Sandaime, that when had first heard him hadn’t really made any sense, but now… they were a part of him.

Naruto took a step forward and leaned to rest his palm on the seal work. He then drew back a moment, and turned to his sensei, now Hokage. “Can I add something?”

At Kakashi’s nod, Naruto reached up to slice his fingertip on a sharp tooth and made quick strokes over the seal work, his blood sinking in and vanishing as fire and chakra coursed after it. The flame raced across the swirling lines before settling at the center of the stone in a faint depression meant to hold it. Considering the amount of time it had taken him to pull all the flame covered energy from the seal at the hospital, it took surprisingly little to guide it into the new patterns. As daylight crested into the sky the blonde teen stepped back, the golden fire and energy that had coated him only moments before now gone.

Kakashi patted his former pupil on the back. “Well done, Naruto. I had been looking for a way to keep it from being put out. Would have been a bit embarrassing if anyone could put out a flame burning on the stone here… if I am correct, you are the only one who could now.”

Naruto nodded and smiled as he looked at the new stone sitting next to the old familiar memorial stone. “Konoha will stand, for as long as the Will of Fire burns in the hearts and minds of its People.” Naruto said quietly.


	38. Necessary Evils

Necessary Evils

By Silver Dragonfly  


* * *

 

It had happened again. The dreams he had not had in years mixed with memories that he now recognized were not his own. He sighed quietly as he slid open his apartment window and then slipped up the wall and onto the roof. He glanced up, his gaze falling on the old familiar stone faces, briefly noting that construction had started on the sixth. He turned away, a twist in his heart and a wrench deep in his center at the sudden reminder. He turned away from the place that he had so often sought comfort from and instead headed toward the edges of the village.

He landed softly, eyes focused on the flames of the monument as they circled round and chased through the scrolling seals across the stonework. He paused and turned, blinking in surprise. “Baa-chan?”

The older woman smirked as she raised the familiar looking sake bottle to her lips, swallowing once before lowering it once more. “Hey, Gaki, take a seat.”

The blonde fidgeted for a moment, but as the older woman narrowed her eyes at him he slouched and then moved to sit beside her, facing both stone memorials that rested in the clearing.

“Nightmares?” She asked quietly.

The blonde tensed, but then nodded and slouched once more, “Not of the War though.”

The older woman raised an eyebrow in question, but did not press.

Naruto fidgeted, but kept his gaze on the ever-moving flames. “They called him the ‘Son of a Demon’.”

Tsunade snorted. “You know better.”

Naruto smiled gently, “Yeah… it just… old memories.”

Tsunade nodded.  “That fire is something else, you know. They wouldn’t let me see it in the hospital, but Kakashi came and told me about it today after you finished this.”

“You snuck out, didn’t you?” Naruto asked.

She swung a fist, hitting his shoulder and huffed as he grunted at the impact. “I can look after myself.”

Naruto smirked, “Of course, Baa-chan. I see you managed to get the sake I brought from Sakura-chan.”

The older woman scoffed. “The day my apprentices can keep sake away from me is the day I give up gambling.”

Naruto’s eyes widened at her statement but decided to not question it; she could still flatten him with a single punch, of that he had no doubt.

“It feeds and renews itself constantly.” Tsunade then stated, her gaze focused once more on the flickering tongues of fire. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Naruto frowned. “I couldn’t control it, not really anyways. I could only sort of guide it, and well, it seemed to really like sticking to me.”

Tsunade hummed in thought. “I don’t like it. You were feeding that boy’s ability with your chakra during the surgery. I saw it.”

Naruto nodded. “Kurama said I had to if I wanted to try and keep him alive.”

“Do you think it could be a sentient living piece of that boy?” Tsunade asked after a few moments.

Naruto frowned and focused his attention on the flame, instinctively stilling to gather nature chakra to enhance his senses. After several long moments he shook his head. “No. I saw his fire when he fought before he took that hit; this is different.”

“So it’s likely from the surgery then, when your chakra was so melded with that man’s ability.” She stated, obviously not really pleased about it. “And you said there are people who have these abilities all over their world?”

Naruto scratched the back of his head as he considered what he knew personally, and what Shanks and his crew had told him. “They are kind of like a bloodline… everyone knows they exist… but that doesn’t mean you’ll ever meet someone with one, at least for the average person. Just like living in a shinobi village pretty much means you’ll run into someone with a bloodline ability, living in the area of the world known as the Grand Line makes it much more likely. From what I’ve been told, each one is unique and there are no duplicates.”

Tsunade frowned. “Naruto, has there been anything different about the chakra in that world? Or that you have noticed with your own?”

Naruto shrugged, “Not really… well except the Nature chakra, that stuff is intense there. I think there might be something special about the Grand Line itself as well, but I haven’t traveled outside of it while there yet.”

Tsunade’s eyes opened wide as she turned to look at the blonde teen fully. “Naruto… how much have you used Sage Mode there?”

The blonde shrugged. “Not a lot, but often enough, I guess. Shanks-oji is crazy strong and we were testing out my different forms of chakra manipulation against the different forms of energy manipulation that they call Haki.”

Tsunade’s hand reached for his and clenched tightly as she met the teen’s gaze, her focus intense.

“Baa-ch—“

“See Sakura before you leave. I want her to run a full diagnostic on you.” The older woman said firmly.

Naruto frowned, “But I’m fine. Why—”

“We don’t know what kind of side effects this world jumping could have on you!” Tsunade said quickly, the concern and worry now evident. “This fire only proves that something has had an effect! I won’t have you dying because we weren’t careful. “

Naruto fidgeted.

“Promise me you’ll see Sakura at the hospital for this before you leave.”

Naruto looked down at where his hand was clutched in hers. “I don’t think…”

“But you don’t know. Please, Naruto.”

The teen sighed, but raised his gaze to the woman who was as close to a mother and grandmother as he had ever had. “Fine, if it will make you feel better.” he conceded begrudgingly.

He yelped as her hand connected with the back of his head.

“What was that for?” he muttered while rubbing the back of his head.

“Do it for your own good too, idiot.” The older woman admonished. “I’ll make sure Sakura knows to expect you.”

The teen slumped.

Tsunade’s expression softened. “I’m sure it’s nothing… but things happen around you, Gaki. I don’t want to gamble with your life.”

Naruto raised his gaze to focus on the flickering flames once more, the weight of her last statement settling over them both. “I understand, Baa-chan.”

“Good.” The woman admonished then smiled once more. “It feels a bit like you, you know.”

Naruto turned to her, confused. “Feels like me?”

She hummed an affirmative. “Reminds me a little bit of your chakra, particularly when blended with Kurama’s chakra.”

Naruto looked back at the flame. “Is that good or bad?”

The older woman smiled sadly and then ruffled his hair before leaning back on one hand while she took another long drink from the waiting bottle. “I don’t know, Naruto, but… it’s comforting.”

Naruto relaxed at that and smiled. “I’m glad.”

.:o:.

Naruto frowned as he studied the open window amidst the hundreds that covered the hospital’s exterior walls. Her office window was open, that meant she had talked to Tsunade, and that she was expecting him. He sighed and leapt from his tree branch perch to land on the vertical building wall before strolling across the wall and closer to the open window. He peeked inside cautiously and breathed out a quite sigh of relief when he didn’t see any sign of red or pink, his teammate’s signature colors. He slipped inside the open window and quietly stepped down onto the room floor before glancing around at the office itself. It had been a while since had been in here.

Blue eyes brightened as he spotted familiar photos hanging on the walls. He pulled his gaze away before being too engrossed in the memories to take note of the rest of the room: a few plants, scroll shelves and other knick-knacks. He glanced to the clock on the wall and grimaced. He supposed it was a good thing she hadn’t been here waiting for him, or he’d be in for an earful about wasting her time and how busy she was.

The window clicked shut and he whirled, eyes opening wide.

“Sa—Sakura-chan! When did you get here? I didn’t see you come in—”

“You still suck at genjutsu, Naruto.”

“Ah well, if you are busy I can always come back later—” He began.

“Don’t even think about it.” She cut him off and then pointed to one of the two doors in the adjacent walls.

“Why the genjutsu, then?” He asked sulking.

“Because I knew you would find an excuse to leave, or not show up if you thought I was too busy.” She snapped. “Exam room, now.”

Naruto gulped and headed in the pointed direction.

“And would it kill you to use a door? Just because Kakashi-sensei doesn’t and Jiraiya-sama didn’t does not mean you can pick up that habit.” She chastised.

“But I like using the window…” Naruto muttered. He’d taken an aversion to doorways as soon as he could get away with it. There were always nosey secretaries trying to keep him from the people he was trying to see; the window bypassed them very nicely.

Sakura poked him hard in the middle of the back causing him to stumble forward.

Naruto sighed and eyed the waiting exam bed warily.

“Oh sit down, it’s not going to bite you.” Sakura admonished as she moved toward the nearby sink to wash her hands.

“But I feel fine.” Naruto stated, though he sat down on the waiting bed anyways.

“Jacket and shirt off, now.” Sakura ordered without turning around.

Naruto pouted.

“Don’t make me remove them for you if you want them in one piece.”

Naruto grumbled but began to unzip his jacket. He had just pulled off his shirt when he stilled, turning to face his teammate. He noted her sad green eyes, and was she about to cry? “Sakura-chan, what—”

“You promised to let me take care of you.” She said quietly. “Naruto, how could you not tell me! What if something had gone seriously wrong! What if the nature energy there changes you and you suddenly can’t ever come back!”

Naruto smiled softly. “Sakura,” She glanced away and then finished drying her hands.

“Tsunade-shishou is right you know.” She stated after a moment, her voice regaining her usual strength and personality. “I studied that fire quite a bit while it had the Critical Care Ward blocked off. It did, well does, remind me of your chakra. Now hold still.” She ordered as she laid a faintly green glowing hand on his chest over his heart.

“You take so many unnecessary risks with yourself and make everyone else worry about you.” She continued, her eyes closed in concentration.

Naruto sighed, they had had this conversation before… several times actually.

“Don’t sigh and roll your eyes at me.” The pink haired young woman stated flatly. “This may feel odd, try to not let Kurama’s energy interfere.”

Naruto muttered but did as she asked. Closing his own eyes, he focused on the feeling of chakra not his own, yet so very familiar, pass through him and let himself fall into a meditative trance, relaxing into the feeling.

It wasn’t until he felt her chakra withdraw that he realized he had unconsciously began collecting nature chakra.

“That wasn’t on purpose, was it?” Sakura asked quietly.

Naruto considered his answer, before finally just nodding.

“Something has changed.” She said after several moments of silence. “I can’t tell what, and I want to do full bloodwork, but Naruto—“

The blonde met her gaze steadily.

“I’m not so sure you should use Sage Mode while in that world. Tsunade-shishou told me you said the chakra there was different somehow. If it is, it could be the cause behind this.”

“But I wasn’t using it when…”

“Changes may have already started.” Sakura interrupted him.

Naruto frowned. “But I don’t feel any different.”

“And that both worries and reassures me.” Sakura answered. “Just… can you get Shima-san and Fuka-saku-san’s advice on it? They know more about Nature Chakra and Sage Mode than anyone else, if they say it’s okay, then fine, but…”

Naruto frowned. “There are incredibly strong people there, Sakura.”

“That doesn’t make me feel any better about it!!” She yelled at him, whirling from where she had begun to gather several vials and the needles and tubing necessary for taking blood samples.

“Just… please,” She met his blue gaze steadily, her own emerald orbs pleading. “Don’t take unnecessary risks.”

Naruto sighed. “All right, I’ll not use Sage Mode except for an emergency until I talk about it with Shima-baa-san and Fukasaku–ojisan.”

“Good, now can you let me draw blood before letting go of Sage Mode, and then again afterward?” She asked.

Naruto blanched.  “So how long is this going to take?” He asked, resigning himself to being his teammates lab subject for a while.

“As long as I deem necessary.” Sakura answered flatly, “Now, hold still and try to not heal this before I finish. I swear, I don’t know how you even manage enough blood for a summoning, let alone some of your seal work, without a cut that would cause a normal person to need stiches.”

Naruto sighed again as he did as asked, then frowned, suddenly feeling like he was forgetting something very important.

 

 

 

 

 

 


	39. While the Captain's Away

While the Captain’s Away  
By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

Yasopp hummed in satisfaction as he exited the Navigation room and stepped out onto the quarter deck of the Red Force. He had spent the morning updating the ship’s log of islands with a new notation to indicate which islands Naruto had ‘tagged’.  He shook his head in amusement as he considered just what Naruto could really do with that ability if he had the ambition. It was a wonder that such skill was bundled into a young man so much like his uncle in character. Sometimes he really wondered just how it was that Shanks had ever become one of the Four Emperors,  and he had been along for the journey… but then… there were those moments that he had no doubts at all.

He shook his head at his thoughts and glanced over the deck, pausing as he spotted a large cluster of the crew all gathered around several barrels on the main deck. He frowned, just what was that lot up to? It was way too quiet for a group of that size. Quiet usually meant trouble. He headed toward the gathering while stretching and then yawned as he came up behind those around the outside edge of the group. He studied the cluster of crewmen and frowned: the kegs weren’t even opened.

“Oi, what’s with you lot? Didn’t Beckmann authorize a party after we anchored?”

There was a muttering of agreement from several of the group.

“So why aren’t ya drinking?” Yasopp asked, starting to worry.

“Cap’n’s been gone for two days.” One of the crew sitting beside Yasopp muttered looking miserable.

Yasopp blinked. “We knew he was leaving, idiot.”

“But it’s been days, Yasopp!” Another crewman moaned.

“What if Hawkeye killed ‘Ruto!?” Another called out his voice bordering on hysteria.

Yasopp scoffed, “You lot saw them fighting on the beach that day. It would take more than a pissy Hawkeye to kill Naruto.”

“But if Hawkeye killed Naruto than the Captain would have to fight him!” a fourth voice spoke up.

“And then Captain would have to kill his favorite Shichibukai!” Someone else added.

“Captain would be in a foul mood for months! “

“There would be no more parties!”

“Yasopp! We can’t let the Captain kill Mihawk!”

Yasopp slumped onto the deck with the group in growing horror as he considered life aboard the Red Force with a moping Captain.  “How could we let them go…” He moaned.

.:o:.

Benn exhaled slowly, watching the smoke as it lazily spiraled upward and away into blue sky. “So you want me to start arranging a rendezvous?” He asked as his gaze drifted back down to the dark red Den Den Mushi sitting on the aft railing beside him.

The Den Den chuckled with the familiar voice of his Captain. “No need for that just yet. I’m sure Naruto will return soon.”

“And in the mean time you will drink Mihawk dry.” Benn responded sardonically. “You drinking all his booze might even be enough to persuade him to fight seriously with you again.”

The Den Den’s expression shifted into a pout that really did resemble the Captain’s face a bit too well. “If only it were that simple. We did actually drink him dry the last time I brought the crew for a party; the Bastard sulked for months and wouldn’t visit until I sent him that crate of wine you had stashed—oops.”

Benn sighed. “Captain, I am well aware of what you did with my rare wine. We will discuss how you can replace it when you are back aboard the Force.”

The Den Den stared silently for several moments.

“I’ll keep the crew out of trouble in the meantime, the spring island we are currently anchored offshore from will do nicely for some restocking and it’s about time the Force got a thorough cleaning.” Benn stated. It would be easier to keep the crew on task without Shanks interrupting for random parties.

“Sounds good, don’t work them too hard, Benn.”

Benn snorted, the Captain was probably relieved to be away for the mentioned spring cleaning. “Of course not, Captain.”

There was a familiar snarl followed quickly sound of a blade meeting another from the Den Den. Before Ben could inquire, the Den Den slumped with the typical “ker-check” that signaled a closed connection.

Benn remained where he was, slowly finishing his current cigarette, a slow smile spreading across his lips. Seemed the Captain and Hawkeye were enjoying the visit. He glanced forward toward the main deck and sighed. It also seemed it was time for him to get the crew to work before they started arranging funeral services for the non-deceased. He would never understand just why it was that the crew always seemed to turn so melodramatic when the Captain was gone for any length of time. He rolled his eyes as he spotted the familiar back of Yasopp now amidst the moping crowd. He stubbed out the butt of his smoke and headed for the main deck.

.:o:.

_Paradise, The Grand Line, Deserts of Alabasta, Spider’s Cafe_

“Goldie, honey, there is a strange little ghost here with something for you.” Paula, formerly known as Miss Doublefinger of Barque works called out from the front of the little store both women worked at.

Miss Goldenweek carefully set down her paint pallet, glancing at the canvas currently resting on her easel before she headed toward the doorway that would bring her to the front of the shop. It had been several months since she and the other former number agents had escaped the Marines and taken refuge in the renovated Cactus Saloon, now the Spider’s Cafe. It was rarely visited by pirates, being so far inland in the desert country, and was remote enough to not draw attention from any Marines. It suited Miss Goldenweek and her friends very well in that venue and they had made themselves at home. Yet, to receive a letter here? Even the news coos were not always reliable with deliveries to their little shop.

She spotted the strange little ghost holding a sealed letter with the name of “Goldie” clearly written on its front. Without a word, she held out her hand and the little ghost giggled as it dropped its burden in her palm before doing several spins and disappearing off through a wall.

“Is it something we need to worry about, Goldie, hun?” Paula asked, leaning on the empty counter. It had been a quiet afternoon in their shop after all.

“No.” Goldie answered, “It’s from my cousin.” She added as she turned the envelope over and broke the seal before sliding out the card and second envelope inside.

                _Dear Cute Goldie,_

Yes, this was most definitely from her cousin.

_I’ve met the orange spiral in person and knew I’d have to let you and that crazy not cute aunt of yours know what I learned. He’s the real thing, so much so it gave me chills and completely ruined his cute factor. His uncle does seem to share something of a family resemblance even though the orange spiral is blonde and I do not think his bounty is un-warranted, even if the Marines really don’t get it. You need to tell the others Goldie, the feeling of it was unbelievable. I don’t think I’ve ever felt anything like it, not even when we were just girls together running away from your crazy aunts and grandma._

_You know how to contact me if you need,_

_Your super cute cousin,_

_P_

The single letter followed by doodles of little zombie bears and more ghosts that resembled the one who had delivered the letter confirmed the identity of the sender.

Goldie frowned as she re-read the letter. It was a good thing her cousin had sent the message with her own carrier, she never had been very good about being subtle and this was definitely something she’d have to pass on to her great aunt. She frowned then sighed quietly. There was no helping it: she’d have to deliver it in person.

“Serious news, then?” Paula asked.                                                                                                                     

Goldie looked up at the taller woman and nodded. “I’ll have to leave the shop and visit some family.” She explained.

Paula nodded. “Val will be happy to help cover for you, I’m sure. Will you be gone long?”

Goldie considered, “I’m not sure. It depends on what my family decides after they get this.”

The older woman smiled, “I understand, honey, come back when you can.”

With a warm smile she nodded brightly and then headed toward her room to start packing. Now if she remembered correctly, Great Aunt Kureha was living on Drum Island.


	40. In the Library With the Cheese Knife

In the Library with the Cheese Knife  
  
By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

“Aww, come on, Naruto-nii, it’s not that bad.” Konohamaru said to the older teen as they sat perched on a pair of stools waiting for their orders of ramen to be served. “And you should have seen us! Moegi, Udon, and me owned those tests! And the matches after the second round, I couldn’t believe Moegi beat that Iwa-nin and then agreed to a date with a Cloud-nin after! Udon’s fight was kind of boring in comparison.  I sort of demolished the arena for my first match. Ebisu-sensei was a bit pissed I think… but the Iwa-jounin who was there told me I reminded him of Asuma-osan and Sarutobi-jiji afterwards.” Naruto smiled and ruffled the newly promoted chunnin’s hair.

“I’m happy for you, Konohomaru. Jiji would be too.” Naruto told him honestly.

Konohamaru grinned widely. “Besides, this just means I’m already one step closer to being Hokage!”

The heavy mood practically hanging over the blonde shinobi darkened as he slouched and turned to stare at the countertop before him.

“Uhh.. I mean…” Konohamaru muttered trying to come up with something he could say to cheer up the blonde once more. Before he could say anything further, however, a jumbo-sized bowl filled with miso ramen and all the extras slid into the space between the blonde’s nose and the countertop. The dark mood evaporated almost immediately as he took a slow deep breath and sighed in contentment.

“O-san, if there was a way I could take your ramen with me always—” He stopped speaking as the first mouthful of noodles filled his mouth.

The man behind the counter chuckled. “Next, you’ll ask me or Ayame-chan to go sailing with you. That is what this Uncle of yours does, right?” Teuchi asked.

Naruto nodded, but didn’t add further details as he focused on the food before him. Two mouthfuls later he suddenly froze, eyes going wide. He slurped his current mouthful slowly and then gulped loudly. “Shanks-oji is going to kill me…” he breathed out, a tinge of panic in his voice.

Konohamaru frowned as he slurped from his own bowl, pausing before taking another bite. “I thought you liked your uncle, why would he kill you?”

Naruto fidgeted before addressing Teuchi. “Umm… O-san, can I get the rest to go?” He asked, refraining from answering the younger teen’s question.

Teuchi shrugged and simply set to work transferring the rest of Naruto’s ramen order into a neat stack of to-go cartons without question. He had grown used to his customers having to leave suddenly years ago. Naruto’s own parents had been rather notorious for it.

“Naruto-nii…” Konohamaru pouted. “..Why?” he asked again.

The blonde fidgeted for another few moments before letting out a long sigh and turning to face his younger friend. “I kind of left him stranded on an island.”

“But isn’t he the Captain of a ship?” Konohamaru asked, confused.

“He is.” Naruto said, “We were visiting a sort of rival-friend of his and I had used Hiraishin to get us there. His ship and crew were nowhere near his friend’s home at the time. Then I got Sakura-chan’s summon and just left…” He explained and then groaned. “They’re both going to kill me.”

“Who are both going to kill you?” a familiar voice asked from behind him.

Naruto yelped and stumbled back, tripping over a stool and landing on his back with a loud crash. “S-Sakura-chan!” He exclaimed in surprise, and a small amount of fear.

The pink-haired young woman frowned, her hands now resting on her hips. “Naruto, who?”

The teen laughed nervously.

“He apparently left his uncle stranded on some island with a friend.” Konohamaru chimed in quickly, not really wanting to see the pink-haired shinobi angry. He remembered what had happened before.

The pink-haired woman snorted as she glanced at the chunnin and smiled. “Congratulations on your promotion, Konohamaru.”

“Uhh, thanks.” The chunnin answered, eyes wide and still a little wary of the med-nin.

The young woman nodded at him before moving forward to sit down. “One miso ramen please, Teuchi-san.”

“Of course, Sakura-san.” The older man replied and set to work.

Sakura glanced down at her teammate and rolled her eyes. “Sit down, Naruto, and at least eat a bowl with me before you go disappearing. I came to talk to you and I doubt another hour or so will make a difference to your uncle now.”

The blonde pulled himself up from where he’d fallen and cautiously slipped onto the seat he had so recently occupied. He smiled in thanks at Teuchi as a new bowl of fresh ramen, pork this time, appeared before him at the same time Sakura received hers. There was a content, if slightly awkward, silence as they both focused on eating, though Naruto kept glancing at the pink-haired shinobi at his side, obviously nervous.

“I didn’t find anything.” She finally stated. “Not that I can be certain of.”

Naruto blinked, surprised. He hadn’t really thought there was anything wrong, but with how Tsunade and then Sakura had acted… he had begun to wonder himself.

“Unfortunately, we never did a full bloodwork analysis while you were in Sage mode before, so I can’t really be certain there isn’t anything either.”

“But that means…” Naruto began trying to understand the medic-nin’s concerns.

“Yes, there is a significant difference in your blood between when you are in sage mode and not. I’m sure the same is also true for when you are using Kurama-san’s chakra as well. You always seemed perfectly fine after battles and didn’t have any strange after effects, though… so it really may be nothing.”

“That’s good then, right?” Naruto asked as he paused before taking another mouthful of noodles.

“It is, but it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be careful.” Sakura admonished turning her gaze on him. “I still want you to get the elder toads to evaluate the nature chakra there before you try anything more with Sage mode.”

“Not sure how they are going to like it—“

“They will want to make sure you aren’t killing yourself.” Sakura replied but seemed to relax now that he had more or less agreed.

Naruto pouted, but watched his teammate as she finished her ramen. “Do you want to go with me?” He asked.

Sakura looked up suddenly, eyes wide. “You would take me?”

Naruto raised his bowl to finish off the last drops and then shrugged as he set it down. “You’d probably end up trying to kill at least half of Shanks-oji’s crew, but yeah, if you wanted to.”

Sakura smiled, “Thank you, but I have too much work to do here. You,” She then poked him hard in the chest, “just need to take better care of yourself and don’t assume you can heal from everything.”

Naruto winced but muttered an affirmative before turning to the counter and the waiting stack of to go cartons. He quickly pulled out a scroll to seal them into. “Until next time, O-san. See you later, Konohamaru, Sakura-chan!”

“We should spar next time, Boss!” Konohamaru called out while Sakura and Teuchi waved as the blonde disappeared.

.:o:.

Naruto paused for only a moment after the initial energy of his teleport faded away before reaching out for the marker he had placed on Mihawk’s hat, and frowned. It was faint, almost distorted and hard to get a fix on. Had Mihawk done something to break the seal? He let out a mutter of relief as he found the one on the kunai he had given to Zoro near and not faded. If he had not been able to make the jump back to retrieve his uncle, he was pretty sure Ben would have made his life hell. Perhaps he should talk to his uncle about placing a permanent marker on him… one that could not be taken away or easily damaged.

He locked on to his marker and let the energy build before vanishing from the storage room just moments before the hatch was opened.

“Guess he already went to get the Captain.” Rockstar muttered, still not quite sure Ben and Yasopp hadn’t just been messing with him when they said they had detected the blonde.

.:o:.

Naruto appeared in a ready crouch, kunai drawn and ready to defend should a sword or three suddenly come his way. He blinked and then glanced around the vacant room, noticing the bed, table, and ready first aid kit. He spotted the familiar kunai blade resting on the table and frowned, wondering why the green-haired man had not kept it with him… but then, well, he supposed it didn’t matter as long as he was training here under Mihawk.

He crouched down and began to reach for nature chakra, and then froze as he remembered Sakura’s warnings. He sighed, seems he’d have to find his uncle the old fashioned way and then wondered just how hard it would be to find Hawkeye’s alcohol stash as that was probably a good place to start, knowing his uncle would show up there sooner or later.

He slipped out into the hallway and glanced around, but spotting nothing to really indicate a direction he should take, he simply picked one and began walking.

He passed various closed doors, which he opened and peered inside. If they were locked, he unlocked them in quick fashion; apparently no one here had ever had to keep a shinobi locked out of anything before, and opened those too.

Then he came across a slightly larger room.  He let out a low whistle as he studied the shelves upon shelves upon shelves of books. He wondered idly if Hawkeye even read them, hadn’t Hawkeye been holding a book when Naruto first arrived with Shanks-oji? He shrugged and wandered into the room, glancing across the titles as he went. Then he paused, and backed up a step, his eyes going wide.

“No way…” he whispered as he raised a finger to trace across a familiar title, Icha Icha Paradise. A wide grin spread across his face as he began to chuckle.  He hadn’t even realized the first volume was printed and being circulated.  It would certainly be months before the publisher he had found would be releasing the next in the set; he suppose he could offer an advance copy, maybe even autograph it and see how the stoic swordsman reacted. Shanks-oji had suggested he try to not enrage the Warlord, but he had probably been enjoying his extended visit, right?

He took a last look around the library and then headed back out into the hallway to continue his search through the large building that could really only be described as a castle.

He supposed he really should consider putting a marker on his uncle; it would make the older man so much easier to find. He would always know where he was on the ship too. Naruto still wasn’t quite sure how the Red-Haired Pirate Captain had ended up snoring in the lowest bulkhead behind a pile of cannonballs that one time he had been unable to find his uncle. The fact that Benn and Yasopp had both acted like it was completely normal had only added to the very distinct impression that the entire crew was crazy, which if he was honest with himself, only made him feel more at home with them. Perhaps he should add whatever this place had as an armory to his search list.

He paused at the bottom of a staircase as he took in the sight of the large kitchen space laid out before him. He glanced around, noticing the pile of dishes by the sinks, but little other signs of use. He peeked through a few doors, finding a cold room with a lot of cheese, and a pantry of dry goods, but no sign of alcohol, Hawkeye, or his uncle.  

He’d almost gone out the same way he had come in, when another doorway, almost hidden behind a large refrigerator unit caught his attention. There was no door and as he peered in through it, he spotted a staircase heading down with several bottles piled along the edges of the stairs. “Bingo.”

Naruto stepped carefully down the well-worn staircase, watching his footing amidst the various discarded bottles and occasional small barrels. Reaching the bottom, he looked around him and blinked in surprise. If he had thought the stairs were covered in discarded bottles… well the space that could only be what they called a wine cellar was worse. Bottles and barrels emptied of their contents had been left scattered everywhere. Open spaces gaped where the now scattered bottles had been stored, particularly the shelves that appeared to have held sake and beer. The wine cabinets seemed to have fared better, but even they had been raided heavily.

He picked his way through the darkened space, noting that several torches had been burned out and replaced in the room based off the pile of burnt up stubs lying against one wall. He peeked around barrels and even a few piles of empty bottles, but still found no sign of his uncle or the original owner of the now absent booze.

Naruto sighed. So his uncle wasn’t making himself at home amidst Mihawk’s booze stash. Just where could they be? Maybe beating up the monkeys outside?

“Time to cover more ground.” He muttered, raising his hands in a well-practiced gesture. In moments the room was filled with Kage Bunshin.  Naruto grinned, “All right, everyone, if you find them, don’t piss them off any further than they probably already are.”

Several of the clones snickered.

“I mean it!” Naruto grumbled.

“Sure, Boss.” One smart ass clone replied, only to be immediately dispelled by his neighbor.

Naruto narrowed his eyes at the offender who shrugged. “He was going to get us all in trouble.”

“Right—get to it!” Naruto ordered and they all charged up the stairs and walls with shouts of agreement, a few more getting dispelled along the way for further smart ass commentary.

Naruto watched them all go and really wondered if his own clones would be the death of him someday.

It didn’t take very long after that for the familiar feeling of new memories to reveal where his uncle was located. “I really wonder if he got up to this sort of thing before I showed up….” Naruto muttered as he followed the path the dispelled clone had remembered and soon found himself in the same room he and Shanks had first arrived in. He paused in the doorway, taking note of everything before entering. On a sofa to one side of the room the pink-haired girl who had been with Zoro was curled up and cuddling with some weird stitched up pillow or creature. On the floor a little ways away and closer to the center of the room was the green-haired teen himself, sprawled on his back and snoring. Scrawled across his chest in black ink were several phrases. _Haweye’s Boy Toy_ and _Red-Hair was here_ , to name a few.

Naruto’s eyes shifted further along to find the Warlord himself unconscious in his armchair, empty wine bottles all around. The shirt he had been wearing had been split down the front, and his uncle was in the process of decorating this chest as he had that of the younger swordsman.  _Red-Hair was here_ already prominent across the man’s pectorals.

“He’s going to try to kill you for that, you know.” Naruto stated.

The red-haired man turned quickly, eyes wide, before quickly made a shushing motion. “Let me finish!” The older Uzumaki admonished in a sort of hushed yell.

Naruto chuckled but said nothing more; who was he to interrupt a prank after all? His eyes scanned the room further and spotted a familiar black hat. He glanced to his uncle, still busy doodling on Mihawk, before striding over to the hat and studying what was left of the seal marker he had placed on it. He supposed he had been lucky it had lasted as long as it had, since it had never been placed with a carrier medium other than his chakra. Well he’d just have to fix that. In moments ink and brush were in hand and he quickly set to work leaving a more permanent marker imbedded in the hat.

His uncle soon appeared at his shoulder. “Problem?” he asked.

“The seal was fading. Luckily I had given Zoro one of my kunai before I left.” Naruto explained as he finished with his brush and laid his palm to the hat to finalize the seal with a brief burst of chakra, refreshing the marker and camouflaging the ink work. “There, he’d have to destroy the hat itself to get rid of it now.”

Shanks snickered, glancing back over his shoulder at the still unconscious swordsmen. “Well we better get going then before the sleeping beauties awake.”

Naruto snorted. “This one is all on you.”

Shanks grinned. “Ah, but you left me here with them.”

Naruto blanched, “About that…”

Shanks only chuckled, “You can explain later, we better go rescue the crew from Benn.”

“Rescue?” Naruto asked.

“He was planning to set them to cleaning when I talked to him last.” Shanks explained.

Naruto’s eyes widened. “Right.” And, with that said, he rested his hand on his uncle’s shoulder before both disappeared in a flash of light.

 

 


	41. In the Calm

In the Calm

By Silver Dragonfly  


Sakura knocked on the wood paneled doorway before pushing the door open and stepping inside. “Good morning, Shishou.” She called out as she slipped out of her sandals and into the pair of house slippers waiting just inside the door.

“I told you I don’t need you to check on me every morning.” The older woman replied from further inside the set of rooms.

“Now, Tsunade-shishou, you know what Shizune-san told you.”

“She worries too much.” The older woman replied tersely as Sakura stepped into the kitchen where the Tsunade sat with a teapot and kettle. “So do you.” She added as she glanced toward the pink haired girl.

“That better be just tea in your cup.” Sakura admonished without giving response to the older woman’s grumbling.

“I’ve told you, I don’t…”

The pink-haired woman glared at her teacher who turned away with a muttered snort.

“You two are going to give yourselves gray hairs with all your fretting.”

Sakura smiled at that, “Not likely; you’ve taught us too well, Shishou.”

Tsunade sighed wearily. “Well, what is it then? You’ve got something on your mind besides my health: I could tell the moment you stepped in the door.”

Sakura smiled as she pulled out the chair across from her teacher before settling herself. “Naruto’s blood is changing.”

Tsunade’s eyes snapped up from where they had drifted to her tea cup. “What do you mean?”

Sakura shrugged. “I’m not really certain, and it really only became evident after several days. The samples I drew while he was in Sage Mode… I thought they would eventually loose whatever nature chakra had been infused in them and would then be like the normal samples. But they’re not. Shizune-san found some old medical records in the Hokage personal files from when he was younger. Even the samples when he wasn’t channeling any chakra have changed.”

Tsunade frowned. “But with the fox—“

“That’s what we thought, too,” Sakura began before Tsunade could finish her statement. “But we also found records from Naruto’s mother and even your grandmother. Neither of them showed any such changes over the course of their lives.”

Tsunade’s fingers tightened around her cup before she slowly relaxed them and then moved to pick up the teapot, filling a waiting mug for Sakura before refilling her own. “Do you think it’s a health risk?” She asked quietly after several long moments.

“No. We ran every possible simulation we could think of that could come from this; if anything, he is healthier.” Sakura said quietly.

Tsunade smiled softly then.  “Good.”

Sakura stiffened in surprise, “But, Shishou…”

“He’s happy, Sakura. Happier than he has been since we all came home from the War.”

“But…”

“If we have to let him go, we will do so.”

Sakura slumped in her seat, eyes downcast. She sniffled once, but then nodded, slowly raising her cup to take a sip of her tea. She paused after a swallow narrowing her gaze at her teacher, but chose to say nothing.

.:o:.

Shanks watched in amusement as his nephew helped with manning the sails. The blonde teen could be seen scurrying across rigging, yards, and line as he followed the directions shouted up to him by Yasopp and a few other crewmembers. Lookouts perched in the crow’s nest called out jeers and taunts at the blonde, laughing when the blonde would trip and almost tumble from the heights; only to turn and shout back at those who were taunting him while perched upside down from the very place he had slipped.

“Are you sure you don’t want him on punishment detail for leaving you stranded on Kuraigana?” Benn asked as he came to lean against the railing of the quarterdeck beside the red-haired Captain.

“Nah, Mihawk has it covered.” Shanks said, laughter in his voice.

Benn arched an eyebrow in query as he pulled out a cigarette and proceeded to light it.

“I told Mihawk he could bill Naruto for the cost of restock. We opened up his special reserves after that. Had no idea ol’ Hawkeye had been holding out on me with his best stuff.” Shanks said and then sighed. “Shame it’s all gone now.”

Benn chuckled, “I imagine the crew will have to pay their bar tabs themselves for a while, at least until Naruto pays that off, rather than pinning them on the boy. Although, if he’s anything like you, he never will pay the bill anyways. As I recall, Mihawk gave up sending you the bill for your drinking indulgences after you gave him that folder full of them for his birthday a few years back.”

Shanks smirked at the memory, and then pouted, “Mihawk didn’t let me raid his liquor stash that year when we visited. Stingy old bird.”

Benn chuckled, “The fact that the bills went unpaid probably didn’t help.” He then took another draw of his smoke before speaking further. “Two years… are you sure of Mihawk’s source?”

Shanks snorted. “Can’t get much more legitimate than Luffy’s own first mate. The news is just not going to be exciting without Luffy’s name popping in out of the blue anymore. But just think of it, Benn, Luffy’s getting training under Rayleigh-san; just think of what he’ll be doing when he takes to the Sea again.”

Benn smiled. “We best be prepared, then.”

Shanks chuckled but then turned more somber. “We’ll have to keep a close eye on Blackbeard.”

Benn grunted. “The Marines are also going to be more trouble in the future. Word is that both Sengoku and Garp are retiring.”

Shanks eyes widened at that. Those two names had been at the forefront of the Marines since he had sailed under Rodger. “It really is a new era.” He said quietly.

“There’s more.” Benn said quietly, “Aokigi challenged Akainu for Fleet Admiral.”

Shanks eyes widened and he turned to face his first mate fully. “When?”

“It hasn’t been confirmed officially yet, but I suspect we’ll see it in the news any day now. Word is ‘Absolute Justice’ and the ‘End of the Age of Pirates’ is the reigning pursuit of the Marines. ” Benn answered.

Shanks sighed and turned forward once more, then smiled as he spotted his nephew in multiples now all but covering sails and rigging in a near sea of orange. “They must be nervous at HQ; some unknown blonde pirate being able to block a direct hit of their newly appointed Commander.”

Benn snorted, but did not relax, “Captain…”

“We’ll have to warn those who answer to us.” Shanks stated, answering the unspoken question. “We chose the risks that came with this life, and that hasn’t changed. But we will protect our own.”

Benn nodded, having expected as much from his Captain.

“Akainu won’t be able to end this Golden Pirate Age quite so easily as that.” The redhead said quietly then smiled, “Whitebeard knew what he was doing at Marineford.”

Benn exhaled. “New waves of pirates have been reaching both Paradise and the New World steadily ever since that day. If the Mad Dog isn’t careful they will lose Paradise trying to bring down the Yonko.”

Shanks smirked. “Two years. Luffy will be ready then, I’m sure of it.”

Benn chuckled once more at that. “And Naruto?”

Shanks’ eyes continued to follow his nephew’s actions with the crew for several minutes before he spoke. “Naruto is Family. Whatever he chooses, be it in the Elemental Nations where he has lived all his life, or here on the open sea, nothing will change that.”

Benn turned his gaze from his Captain to the teen high up in the rigging. “Well, we best see to it he is prepared for whichever choice he makes.”

Shanks chuckled. “You just want to use him for target practice.”

Benn shrugged. “I thought the crew might like a new piñata to liven things up.”

Shanks blinked and then turned his gaze to his first mate one more. “You are a terrible man.”

Benn smiled slowly. “Of course, Captain.”  
  


 

 


	42. Before the Storm

Before the Storm

By Silver Dragonfly  


* * *

 

“You want to start teaching me Haki?” Naruto asked, surprised.

“Well, mostly Benn and the crew want to use you as a target dummy, but essentially yes.” Shanks replied with a wry grin.

Naruto narrowed his eyes. “Target dummy?”

“Remember the demonstration we gave you of Observation Haki?” Shanks asked back.

Naruto considered for a moment before nodding, “The blindfold thing, right?”

“That’s right. Anyone with enough will and strength of character can learn either Armament or Observation Haki, though most will go their entire lives without unlocking either. I believe it’s highly likely you already have unlocked them, and even used them occasionally without being aware of it. The simplest and most direct way to expand on those abilities is being forced into situations where you have to depend on them.”

“Thus the target dummy.” Naruto stated, getting where this was going.

In some ways, it reminded him of training he had gone through often enough before. At that moment, he slumped and let out a long sigh. “It will have to wait a bit longer before we can start, Shanks-oji.”

Shanks looked at his nephew, puzzled. “Is something wrong?”

Naruto fidgeted for a few moments. “Sakura made me promise to consult the toads before I did anything more with Sage Mode in this world. This has enough elements like it, that if I don’t… well let’s just say she’ll probably make my last beating look like a friendly hug.”

“What is wrong with your Sage Mode?” Shanks asked. “You didn’t seem to have any problems with it.”

Naruto shrugged. “There was some weird side effects to some seal work I had done at the hospital. That was why I had to go suddenly: they needed me to deal with it. Sakura and Baa-chan are worried that the Nature Chakra of this world may have some negative effect on me.”

Shanks frowned, this did not sound good. “And where do the toads come into this?”

Naruto blinked blankly at his uncle for several moments.  “Ah! You don’t know! The toads are the ones who taught me how to use Nature Chakra and Sage Mode. The elders are masters of it and their entire mountain valley is heavily saturated with Nature Chakra, unlike most of the Elemental Nations.” Naruto explained.

“So, they should be able to tell if there is something harmful with the Nature Chakra of this world?” Shanks asked.

Naruto nodded.

“Well, then, what do you need to do to bring them here?”

Naruto grinned. “Watch.”

No sooner had he spoken then his hands flickered into movement and his palm was slapped onto the deck planks between them.

Shanks yelped as he was suddenly shoved from where he had been standing in the middle of the main deck to up against the railing at the very edge of the ship, the wood creaking behind him.

“Naruto! Took you long enough! Shima-baa-san is really upset you haven’t visited recently. And what’s with all this rope and cloth.”

“Kichi! What are you-- I thought I only used enough chakra for one of the messengers!” The blonde’s voice called out in surprise.

“Captain! We’ve got a problem! We are dangerously low in the water with the sudden extra weight!”

“We need to get rid of this Sea-king fast!”

“Hey watch it with those! Naruto, are you in a fight?!” The rumbling voice of the large toad grumbled as he shifted and the main mast creaked where his back was pressed against it. “I can’t move in all this.”

Atop the large orange toad’s head the blonde teen glanced around and winced as ropes snapped and bits of wood that had likely been part of the rigging began to fall toward the sea and deck. “Uhh, Gamakichi, I’ll have to call you back later, this isn’t a good time.”

There was a sudden whoosh and the large toad vanished, leaving only the damage his sudden appearance had caused in his wake.

The Red Force creaked and groaned as it bobbed upward suddenly and more lines snapped at the sudden release of tension.

Shanks rubbed his back as he moved forward, scanning the damage to his ship. Naruto landed where he had stood before and looked at him nervously, a guilty expression covering his face.

“Perhaps you should refrain from summoning any more of them while we are at open sea.” Shanks offered lightly, frowning as several crewmen rushed across the deck to the main mast, inspecting it for any serious damage.

Naruto flinched. “Yeah, that would probably be a good idea… that didn’t quite go the way I expected it.”

“Well, that’s a relief. We’d have quite an issue if the Captain’s favorite nephew was intentionally trying to drown us all at sea.” Benn’s voice said as he stepped up behind the blonde teen.

“I’m his only nephew.” The blonde muttered, but refrained from adding further comment as the ship’s First Mate placed a hand on his shoulder.

 “Captain, if you don’t mind, we could use Naruto’s multi-tasking talents in repairing all the damaged rigging. If we don’t get the sails back in working order quickly, we will be at the mercy of the weather.”

Shanks nodded and then watched as Benn guided his nephew toward a small cluster of the crew who were already pulling out spare line and rope to begin repairs. He sighed and leaned back, trying to stretch out the abused muscles of his back.

“Summoning toads the size of sea kings…” The red haired pirate shook his head.

“Good news, Captain, the main mast is undamaged.” Yasopp stated as he came to stand beside the red-haired man. “We took on some water down in the bilge, but we’ve already got a work detail on the pumps taking care of it.”

Shanks chuckled at that. “Another normal day on this crazy sea we call home?”

“She likes to keep us on our toes, that’s for certain. Don’t think we’ve ever had a sea king show up like that before, let alone one that could talk.”

Shanks snorted. “It wasn’t a sea king.”

Yasopp blinked.

“Naruto summoned it. Apparently he wasn’t expecting one of that size to appear.”

Yasopp let out a low whistle. “No wonder Benn’s got him running the new yard lines already. Still, no worse than some of the damage caused when we have a day of sea king fishing.”

Shanks chuckled. “Don’t tell Naruto that.”

The other man grinned.

.:o:.

Doctarine chuckled as she relaxed in the lawn chair on the small outcropping of land that rested a short distance away from the rushing cascade that was the official entrance to the Grand Line. She had found the small house that was behind her empty and had proceeded to make herself at home; she knew the home’s owner would return soon. The large whale that swam lazily just a short distance away was proof enough of that.

“Still waiting, Laboon?” The older woman asked, but didn’t really expect an answer. She had already taken note of the large healing scars across the whale’s crown and the sloppy mark that was painted there. She was surprised it had not washed off, after all, she was sure the crew that had left it there had passed through here quite some time ago now. Before she could consider the topic further, a metal port hole in the whale’s side rolled open and a small boat glided out before pausing long enough to make sure the door was secured again behind it. The whale let out a squee that echoed off the nearby cliffs and began to submerge.

Doctraine snorted as the small boat rocked wildly for a few moments before it began heading towards the small dock she herself had arrived at only earlier that same day.

She watched amused as an older man exited the boat and then strolled up the dock toward her. “This house has an occupant, so you can just--- Kureha-sensei!” The man exclaimed in surprise as he identified his visitor.

“It’s been a while, Crocus-kun.” Doctarine said as she chuckled and took a long drink from the bottle of sake she had found in the man’s home.

The man chuckled, “I really am far too old for you to be calling me that, but you are looking well, Sensei.”

“Of course, and no I will not teach you the secret of my youth!” She answered him and laughed again as he simply frowned.

“Why are you here, Kureha-sensei, I thought you had chosen to remain on Drum?”

Kureha sighed, “Ah, well my cute little apprentice went off to find adventure, and then my cute little grand-niece brought me some interesting information.”

The older man blinked as he settled into another lawn chair across from his old teacher. “Information?”

The older woman nodded, “Tell me, Crocus-kun, what do you know of Red Hair Shanks, or should I say Uzumaki Shanks?”


	43. Back to Basics

Shanks eyes narrowed as he stared at the slips of square paper resting on the deck between him and his nephew where they sat across from one another. The occasional murmuring and snickering of his crew could be heard drifting down from the rigging above; the bunch of gulls that they were, all acting like they didn’t have anything better to do. “You want me to ‘stick’ these to my forehead with chakra?” Shanks asked, glancing up from the slips of paper to his nephew’s grinning face.

“Yeah, we used leaves back in the academy, but the concept should pretty much be the same. It gets you used to channeling chakra to specific points of your body… I think.” The blonde replied, his tone losing its confidence right at the end.

“You think?” Shanks asked eyebrow twitching. If this was some elaborate prank that Yasopp and the others had put him up to…

Naruto nodded quickly, and then looked a bit apologetic. “Sorry, I never really have been good explaining this type of stuff.”

Shanks sighed but reached down to pick up one of the slips of paper. “Does it have to be my forehead?”

Naruto shrugged. “Maybe not… but there was probably a reason for it.”

“Didn’t you listen to your teachers, Naruto?” Rockstar called out from where he leaned against the main mast, several other crewmen chuckling at the question.

Naruto glanced upward, “Careful there, Rockstar, would hate for you to hurt yourself when you fall.”

The pirate laughed. “What do you mean ‘when,’ brat?!”

Naruto vanished from where he had been seated as the sounds of a scuffle broke out overhead.

Shanks shook his head in amusement but didn’t interfere, choosing instead to look at the slip of paper skeptically once more. He sighed again, and resigned himself to it. The crew was going to use this against him for months.

Shanks glanced upward as a yelp and curse filled the air, quickly followed by Rockstar falling only to be caught by the ankle by his nephew. Shanks chuckled; he remembered doing that to Buggy.

Benn blew out a stream of smoke as he came to stand near the Red-Haired pirate and then glanced down at the bits of paper starting to blow away. “You are losing your mock-leaves.” He stated dryly, and smirked as Shanks cursed and quickly made to grab the slips.

Shanks muttered darkly about nosey First Mates after catching the slips, but settled to the task of trying to make the paper stick to his skin once more.

.:o:.

It was several days later, with Shanks still not managing to make the paper slips stick to his forehead or any other body part, except in his hair, that the topic of Naruto’s own ability with the exercise was brought up.

“Show it to me again.” Shanks demanded, his eyes focused intensely on his nephew as the blonde sighed and picked up several slips of the paper before making them not only stick, but move in spiraling circles around each other across his palm.

The red-haired Captain frowned, but picked up his own slip and focused on it once more.

“You must have been a pro at this with all the chakra stuff you use all the time, Naruto.” Lucky Roo stated from where he sat a short distance away caring for his weapons.

Naruto blinked then grinned, laughing loudly. “Of course! I had Hokage-jiji teaching me himself!” He exclaimed, his voice carrying across the deck.

Those nearby all paused and turned to look at the blonde.

Shanks raised his eyes from his slips of paper to his nephew. “You sucked, didn’t you?”

Naruto deflated and grumbled about know-it-all uncles while nearby crew all chuckled.

“So what allowed you to master it?” Yasopp asked from his own place near Lucky Roo, his pistols lay out before him as he dismantled, cleaned, oiled, and reassembled his weapon of choice.

Naruto shrugged, “I never really did get it back in the Academy. I’ve always had really high amounts of chakra, even as a kid, and it made my chakra control complete shit. Caused me all sorts of trouble trying to learn the Bunshin no jutsu.”

“Bunshin, don’t you use that one all the time now?” Yasopp asked.

Naruto chuckled. “Kage Bunshin.” His lips spread wide in a grin and his eyes sparked. “No one can match my skill with Kage Bunshin. Not even the Kages themselves.”

The crew chuckled, some of them suggesting he was exaggerating again, but Naruto only smiled.

“So, if you never mastered this exercise, what do you call that?” Benn asked as he gestured toward the two slips of paper still dancing in circles on the teen’s palm.

Naruto chuckled. “A lot of chakra manipulation training. This exercise is really pretty simple after mastering the tree-climbing, water-walking, and Rasengan. All three of them use some of the same concepts, but they all took a lot more chakra, so were easier for me.”

“Aha!” Shanks cheered as he focused on the pieces of paper now sticking to his palm as he turned it left, right and upside down. At that moment a strong gust breezed by taking the slips of paper with it. “Come back here!” Shanks called out trying to grasp the slips of paper as the wind took them.

All around chuckles and laughter broke out.

Shanks sighed.

Naruto patted his uncle on the back, an amused smile on his face. “Don’t worry Shanks-oji, I’m sure you’ll get it soon.” And then offered his own still spiraling slips of paper to his uncle.

“You are enjoying this.” Shanks said as he plucked one of the slips off his nephew’s palm, noticing the tug of resistance as he did so.

“Of course.” Naruto answered, still smiling.

“Could you teach more of us, Naruto?” One of the crew who had been watching from where he perched in the rigging above asked.

Naruto frowned, “Umm, I don’t think so. I’ve never seen adults start using chakra that hadn’t trained for it as kids. Something about the chakra system never developing if not used… I think.”

“Isn’t it a bit risky for the Captain to learn, then?” Yasopp asked approaching the group from behind with two escaped pieces of papers caught between his fingers.

“Umm, maybe? Kurama thinks it should be all right, and I could sense his chakra when in Sage Mode. Was more than what most chuunin have, but not anywhere near what he would have had if he had trained all his life.” Naruto explained.

“You couldn’t sense the rest of the crew then?” Benn asked as he exited the Navigation cabin and walked up to lean on the railing behind Naruto, letting a long trail of smoke escape his lips.

“I could, but it was like a bunch of civilians.” Naruto explained.

Shanks chuckled, his gaze focused on the small piece of paper slowly moving in loops around his palm. “Seems you lot will just have to do things the old fashioned way.”

“I wonder if there is a Chakra Chakra no Mi?” someone asked.

“How would that even work?” another chimed in.

“Bet you’d just go poof like Naruto’s clones!” another added, the rest laughing.

“We should arrive at Dōkutsu no Takishima in two days, weather allowing, Captain.” Benn then said calmly.

Shanks looked up with spark in his eye. “Good to hear, Naruto can summon his toad friends and we can finally get started on his Haki training.”

Naruto glanced around himself nervously, sensing that the entire crew’s attention was now on him. “Why do I suddenly feel like I’m being thrown to a pack of wolves?”

All around him members of the crew chuckled.

“That’s because you are, and that you can sense it means it shouldn’t be too difficult to fully awaken your Observation Haki.” Shanks stated.

Naruto blinked and his expression turned into one of shocked disbelief, “You really do want to treat me like a target dummy!”

“Ah, that would be Benn and Yasopp actually.” Shanks said with amusement.

“Well, he definitely has it awakened.” Yasopp said cheerfully.

“You are all terrible people.” Naruto said sullenly as he glanced back and forth between Yasopp and Benn.

Benn chuckled darkly. “Of course, we are pirates.”

“Perhaps we should test him, see if he uses it subconsciously or not. Can’t be that tied to his Sage Mode if he does.” Yasopp suggested, smirking.

“You just want to shoot at me.” Naruto stated flatly.

“Your point?” Yasopp asked.

Shanks chuckled. “Well, Yasopp does have a point. If you are already using it, there is no reason not to train it.”

“If you are using it, it must be trained. It can become a liability if not.” Benn added.

Naruto eyed the three older men warily. “I take it back; you aren’t wolves, you three are demons.”

Shanks grinned, his eyes sparking with mischief. “You say the sweetest things. Now, I would recommend dodging, oh and no chakra.”

Naruto blanched. “None?”

Shanks smirk turned more sinister. “None.”

A shot rang out and Naruto yelped, eyes going wide as a few blonde strands wafted away on the wind.

Yasopp chuckled. “That was a warning shot.”

“Better start running, kid.” Benn stated as he lit a new cigarette and grinned.

“You’ll regret this!” Naruto called out as shots began to fill the air followed by his yelps and further cursing.

Shanks sighed in pleasure. “We haven’t had the chance to do this in a while.”

Benn snorted. “We haven’t had to build up the crew’s tolerance to your haki since we recruited Rockstar.”

“Perhaps it’s time for a refresher course.” Shanks suggested.

“Your slips of paper are blowing away again, Captain.” Benn stated, eyeing the slips of paper that fluttered in the wind, and then chuckling as his Captain let out a string of curses once more. It really was good to be a pirate.


	44. Tickling Distractions

Tickling Distractions

By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

It was only a short time after the target dummy discussion when several of the crew volunteered to help out getting the blonde ninja-pirate’s Observation Haki training underway. Amused, Benn had let Yasopp take the lead in organizing it and the blonde was now jumping around on the main deck while the crew treated him like a fish in the bottom of a barrel.

The teen was doing surprisingly well for his first day of training with the ability, proving his and Shanks’ suspicions that he had awakened it some time ago, but never formally trained or mastered it. The kid was good at dodging, that was certain, but…

“Quit wasting so much movement!” Yasopp’s voice called out, scolding. “What’s the point of being able to dodge in advance if you give up all the advantage of it with wasted movement?!”

Benn chuckled from his point of observation on the quarter deck.

The exercise continued for several more moments uninterrupted until the teen suddenly lost focus and yelped as he barely dodged a bullet aimed at his head. Benn frowned; that had been close. “Oi, Naruto. You can’t lose focus so easily in a fight. That’s the third time in the last hour.” The first mate spoke up, drawing the attention of all those around him.

Yasopp sighed and leaned back against the main mast where he was perched on the main topsail platform. “Benn’s right, ya know. You keep losing it.”

The blond teen fidgeted and hung his head; he couldn’t deny the fact.

“What is it?” Shanks asked as he came to stand beside Benn, eyebrow arched in inquiry.

Naruto deflated further at his uncle’s question, shuffling in embarrassment, before muttering something that caused those nearest him to perk up in surprise.

“Naruto, Hawkeye isn’t even anywhere near us on the Grand Line right now, how could…” Rockstar began but trailed off as the blonde summoned a clone to his side.

The crew all stared and then several began to snicker as they put two and two together.

Shanks considered his nephew and the clone and hummed. “You left clones on Hawkeye’s island.”

Naruto nodded and let his clone disperse. “He’s apparently started hunting them in the last hour, and well… he’s being rather brutal about it.”

Benn lit a cigarette, took a long drag, and exhaled before adding, “This shouldn’t cause you such distraction. You’ve fought without the destruction of your clones causing you issues before. We’ve all seen it.”

Naruto sighed. “They’ve been playing hide and seek… and painting things in his mansion orange among other things. Every time Mihawk catches one, I get memories of new pranks they set up.”

The crew burst into full laughter at that and Naruto shrugged. “I could dispel them all now…”

“But that would spoil the fun.” Shanks finished for him with a grin. “You know, I may not be able to keep him from killing you the next time we meet up.”

Naruto shrugged and then smirked. “The look on his face when he found the first tower painted completely orange...”

“Did you say ‘tower painted orange’?” Yasopp asked as several crew let out snickers and low whistles.

“Yeah, that island is super gloomy.” Naruto stated as if it was the most obvious solution.

“Kid, Shanks is right; Mihawk is going to kill you.” Yasopp stated.

“Does that mean Shanks is going to have to kill Mihawk?” a crewman not far from Yasopp asked as a few whispers started to spread from those around.

Naruto blinked as he watched the crew around him suddenly begin muttering darkly about Shanks being in a foul mood and not having parties for months. “What…”

Shanks glanced from his crew to Benn. “Please tell me this isn’t what happened while I was gone.”

Benn raised an eyebrow, “Captain, you know better than to ask that.”

Naruto walked through the now distracted and muttering crew to stand beside his uncle. “I don’t get it, what happened?”

Shanks sighed and Benn chuckled before answering. “The crew speculated what would happen if Mihawk killed you while you two were both gone. They came to the conclusion this would lead to Shanks having to killing Mihawk and then being in an eternally foul mood and the end of all parties.”

Naruto’s face twisted into one of annoyance, “As if I would get killed so easily as that!”

The crew all seemed to pause; turning to stare at the blonde. Silence held for several long moments before new whispers broke out.

“Hey if Naruto is strong enough to defend himself, then we have nothing to worry about.”

“Yeah, the kid has faced him before!”

“He faced Akainu and lived!”

“But what if that was surprise and luck!”

“Then like Captain, Yasopp, and Benn said, we make sure the kids got what it takes!”

Almost as one, the crew pounced, and the blonde teen quickly found himself dragged back down on the main deck as additional crew joined in and started the ‘fish in a barrel’ scenario all over.

Naruto yelped as he barely dodged the first flurry. He glared at several of the crew opening his mouth to voice a complaint when another bombardment started and he was forced to dodge again.

Shanks and Benn watched while Yasopp began calling out critiques and tips once more, leaning on the railing and enjoying the show.

“No more distractions, Naruto! We won’t hold back if you freeze up because another one of your clones pops!”

Curses and promises of bodily harm began to fly back and forth between crew and the Captain’s nephew as the practice continued and the teen began to show signs of when his attention wasn’t right on track.

“Nothing quite like trial by fire,” Shanks said before taking a drink from his nearly forgotten bottle.

“Should we have navigation plan a course for some more dangerous territory?” Benn asked, amused but still keeping a careful eye on the whole affair.

“Hmm, maybe after we get this Sage Mode and business with his toads sorted out.” Shanks answered. “We have our own affairs to see to yet as well.”

Benn nodded.

“We aren’t likely to run into Mihawk again for quite some time, anyways. He has his own protégé to deal with.”

Benn raised an eyebrow at that. “Mihawk has a student?”

Shanks grinned largely and studied his first mate from the corner of his gaze. “Luffy’s first mate is currently staying on his island.”

Benn blinked. “Roronoa?”

“Ah. He’s not just Mihawks’ source of information on Luffy, he’s apparently training under Hawkeye now for two years, just as Luffy is with Rayleigh. No word on the rest of the crew yet, but I’m sure they all got Luffy’s message. Even Yasopp’s son.”

Benn turned to look at Shanks quickly then. “So it is…”

“Ah, Zoro confirmed it. Yasopp’s son, Usopp, is part of Luffy’s crew.”

Benn chuckled and glanced up at the crew’s sniper, amused that the man had missed the information as he focused on the blonde teen darting around on the deck below. “Will you tell him?”

Shanks chuckled. “Oh I’m sure it will come up at some point.”

“He’s going to be melodramatic about it if you keep it from him for too long.” Benn responded.

“Yeah, it’ll be great.” Shanks said in answer with a sigh of contentment as his eyes focused on his crewmate and then his nephew once more.

“You really can be a cruel man, Captain.”

Shanks only chuckled before shouting down at the group below. “You call that dodging! I’ve seen rabbits do better!”

The teen whirled to face his uncle, but before he could shout a reply, was forced to focus on quickly dodging again.

Shanks chuckled and settled back once more. “I’d forgotten how entertaining it was to heckle the rookies.”

Benn snorted. “Most rookies don’t meet your entertainment standards.”

Shanks sighed, “True. Ah well, at least we have Naruto.”

It was at that moment the teen seemed to trip and a knife slashed through his hair before sinking into the wood of deck beyond the teen and all seemed to freeze in place to watch the handful of golden strands flutter to the ground.

Shanks frowned. “Naruto…”

The teen straightened his back to his uncle but his head raised as he reached up to tighten the cloth that secured his Hiate. “Yeah, I got it.” Several moments passed without any further movement from crew or teen. “Well, what are you waiting for?!”

The crew didn’t vocalize a response, but weaponry began to fly once more, the occasional crew member darting in with club and staff to swing strikes amidst the flurry of projectiles.

The mood of everyone shifted.

Benn hummed in amusement. “Took him long enough.”

Shanks smirked, “You are just waiting for him to get good enough for you to join in.”

Benn grinned darkly at the comment. “Of course, Captain.”  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Managed to meet my writing goal this afternoon/evening, so this update is actually on schedule, more or less :)


	45. Meet the Toads

Meet the Toads  
  
By Silver Dragonfly

* * *

 

“You sure you aren’t going to nearly kills us with this one?” Yasopp asked from where he stood beside Benn and Shanks. They had reached Dokutsu no Takishima and were ready to start investigating the  Nature Chakra issue that had been raised. It was decided, after the near mishap with summoning before, that it would be done on shore in a space large enough to easily accommodate the large toads. Once the crew had landed, most had been put to work setting up a camp, since the Red Hair Pirates planned to remain at the current island for several days while Naruto, Shanks, Benn, and Yasopp decided to get down to business.

“You bet! I’ve been summoning the toads since I was eleven; haven’t accidently summoned Gamabunta since back then either.” Naruto responded with a cheeky grin, his posture relaxed.

“Gamabunta?” Benn asked.

“Toad Boss; he’s really big. Good thing I didn’t get him last time or the Red Force probably wouldn’t’ve come out of it so well.” Naruto explained speculatively.

Shanks stilled at that statement. “Remind me to ask you to verify your abilities won’t destroy my ship, before— ” Shanks paused, making sure he met Naruto’s gaze fully, “you use them.”

Naruto flinched back a bit, “Right… not a problem.”

Shanks relaxed and grinned, “Well let’s meet some more of these toads from Mt. Meeobooku.”

“Mt. Myouboku.” Naruto corrected.

“That’s what I said.” Shanks said back.

Naruto shook his head, but decided not to worry about it for now. He quickly bit his thumb before his hand flew into motion, ending with his palms on the ground before him. “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!”

Hazy air filled the space quickly and then there was motion.

“Suiton: Teppodama!” a familiar voice shouted. A large orb of water shot out over the ocean within feet of the anchored Red Force, sending the ship rocking wildly in the shockwave of its passing.

“Kichi, Stop! You’ll destroy the ship!” Naruto called out frantically.

Shanks glared, eyebrow twitching.

Benn sighed and pulled out a new cigarette.

Yasopp groaned and hung his head while reaching up to rest a hand on Shanks shoulder. “He is your nephew, Captain.”

“Naruto!” The voice of the toad answered. “We’ve been worried! You summoned me days ago into hostile territory and then we heard nothing! Ma and Pa were about ready to Reverse Summon you to Mt. Myouboku!”

“So, that means you start throwing water bullets as soon as I summon you?!” Naruto shouted back.

“We were surrounded by swords last time! I wasn’t going to just get stabbed!” The toad growled back.

“That wasn’t a hostile situation! You just surprised them; I was trying to summon a messenger! You showing up caused quite a bit of damage to the ship!”

“What do you mean you were trying to summon a messenger? You wouldn’t have gotten me unless you overloaded it with chakra!”

“I used the same amount I would have used back home!” The blonde shouted back.

“Oh, like you haven’t overloaded it before.” The toad shot back.

“That’s beside the point!”

The three Red Hair Pirates stood watching as the blonde teenager perched atop the massive toads head and crouched down while glaring and shouting. The toad had his eyes almost cross-eyed as he in turn glared at the teen atop his head.

“How long do you think they’ll keep shouting at each other?” Yasopp asked quietly.

Before Benn could answer, Shanks began striding forward.

“Oi! What’s the big idea trying to crush and blow up my ship?!” The Red-Haired Captain called out, hand resting on the hilt of his sword.

Both toad and teen turned to look at the man striding toward them across the sand.

“Shit.” The blonde muttered.

“Oi, Naruto we need to fight this guy?” The large toad asked drawing his blade.

“You want to go a round, Froggy?” Shanks challenged.

“Bring it, old man!” the toad shouted back. Before blades could meet, the toad yelped and reached up to rub his head. “Naruto, what the hell?”

“Kichi, meet my uncle. Shanks-oji, meet Gamakichi. He’s been my partner since we were both kids.” Naruto called out before jumping down from where had been crouched atop the toad’s head.

“And you’ve always had a habit for causing mayhem and destruction?” Shanks inquired.

Both teenager and large toad suddenly looked a little sheepish.

“Ummm, maybe?” Naruto said carefully, not quite sure of how his uncle was going to react.

The redhead grinned, “Good to hear,” but then his expression turned more serious as he rested his hand on the still sheathed sword. “But let’s keep it away from my ship.”

Both nodded and mumbled a quick “Yes, Sir.” in reply.

“Good. Now, Gamakichi, was it?” Shanks asked as he moved to rest a hand on Naruto’s shoulder and look up at the large toad.

“Yeah, that’s me.” The toad asked, not quite sure how to respond at this point.

“Can you tell me any stories about Naruto when he was even more of a kid?”

“HEY!” the blonde shouted and pulled back from his uncle in annoyance.

Gamakichi glanced between the two slowly, and then chuckled, the sound reverberating in his chest before drifting out along the shore. “Oh, I have stories all right.”

“Kichi!” Naruto squawked out indignantly.

“Oh, this I’ve got to hear.” Yasopp said with a chuckle.

“Perhaps some other time; there is another issue we are here to address.” Benn stated before anyone could comment further.

Naruto stood straighter at the reminder of why he needed to summon the toad in the first place. “Right. Hey Kichi, I need you to ask Fukasaku-ojiisan and Shima-obaasan if I can summon them for a bit. Non-combat; need them to evaluate this place’s Nature chakra.”

The large orange toad narrowed his gaze and then stuck out his tongue into the air and held it there for several minutes. His eyes quickly widened as his eyes focused on Naruto. “Just where are we? This place is more saturated than our mountain valley. Have you tried using Sage Mode yet?”

Naruto nodded. “It’s why I need to talk to Fukasaku-ojiisan and Shima-obaasan. Tsunade and Sakura are both worried about side effects.”

“On it. Nice to meet you, Shanks-san!” and then the large toad vanished.

“Do they always come and go like that?”  Yasopp asked.

“Yeah, pretty much.” Naruto replied with a shrug.

“Will you have to summon the other two, or can they come to you on their own?” Shanks asked, idly wondering just how big these elders would be after learning Gamakichi was around Naruto’s age.

“Well, they have their own ways of getting to Konoha, but I’ll need to summon them here. I’ll give Kichi some time to explain before bringing him back to find out if they’re ready.” Naruto explained, his attitude about the whole event making it apparent that summoning such creatures was normal.

“Is this creature summoning a ‘ninja thing,’ or an ‘everyone thing’ in your home world?” Benn asked, curious.

“Hmmm, well there’s me, Dad, and Ero-Sennin who summoned the toads. Kakashi-sensei has this awesome pack of nin-dogs. Tsunade-baachan and Sakura-chan have the contract with the slugs. Orochimaru, Anko-san, and Teme summon snakes. Hmmmmm, Gaara’s sister summoned some sort of weasel… I think, so yeah, a ninja thing.” The teen said, nodding to himself.

The three Red Hair Pirates stared blankly.

“And they all get big like that? That’s like being able to summon a sea-king whenever you fancy!” Yasopp exclaimed, and then turned to his captain. “Can you imagine? Summoning sea-kings to take out enemy ships and bases!”

“What’s a sea-king?” Naruto asked.

The three turned attention to the teen.

“Haven’t we had any run-ins since Naruto started sailing with us?” Shanks asked, blinking in surprise.

“No, I don’t believe we have, Captain.” Benn replied.

“Well, that’s weird.” Yasopp stated.

“We can worry about missing sea-kings another time. Naruto, how’s the range of your Observation Haki?” Benn asked.

“Range?” Naruto asked.

“Pretty sure he could read the entire ship when we were training him.” Yasopp offered.

“Not bad for someone just starting out.” Shanks said with a grin.

“You mean like how far can I sense things?” Naruto asked catching on.

“That’s right.” Benn stated, “The Captain has one of the longest ranges of anyone I’ve met. Most can only manage a few miles on average. Those who push their mastery of it can reach a hundred or more; it’s how Shanks could get a good read on what was actually happening on Marineford before we arrived there. You seemed to have shown some signs of being able to reach a range like that yourself.”

Naruto’s eyes widened and then turned more somber. “When I’m using Kurama’s chakra, I can sense negative emotions. The stronger the emotion, the easier it is to read. I probably could have sensed the emotions of Marineford from as far away as where we had that run in with Kaido.”

“Only negative emotions?” Shanks asked; Naruto had told him something about this before, but it seemed important to be clear now.

“Yeah, it’s kind of a shitty deal, really. Explains why Kurama is cranky so much of the time.” Naruto offered.

Benn hummed in thought. “I wonder if that range will actually carry over to your Haki. Will make training it all the more important or you will have migraines every day of your life.”

Yasopp groaned at that thought.

“That bad?” Naruto asked.

Yasopp snorted. “Some awaken their Observation Haki gradually, with their skill and range with it increasing over time. Others have it come alive full-blown and pick up everything with no idea how to turn it off. I was drunk for three months solid, I think, until I managed to learn how to filter most of it out as background noise.”

Shanks smiled wryly, “He was pretty pathetic for that while.”

Yasopp glared at his captain. “It didn’t help that this bastard here kept leaking his Conqueror’s Haki at the same time.”

Shanks grinned and shrugged. “We were young.”

Benn snorted. “So how is your range of this island with just Observation Haki?”

The blonde tapped his index finger on his chin for a moment in consideration before giving a decisive nod. “All of it.”

“All of it?” Shanks asked.

Naruto nodded. “I wasn’t sure if I was sensing something that lived in the water or on the island for a bit, but yeah that’s really deep down, and well, it feels like its focused on fishy-type things so yeah, all of it.”

Benn chuckled.

Yasopp shook his head in wry amusement. “Why am I not surprised?”

“Well then, we’ll have to make sure we cover full range in training then. No point in leaving all that skill to waste if a sniper decides to take a shot at you.” Shanks said, and then paused. “Naruto, can your Kage Bunshin use Observation Haki?”

The blonde blinked, “Haven’t tried it; don’t see why not.”

Shanks smirked. “Oh this will definitely be interesting. Hey Benn, any bets on how long it will take the marines to think he’s eaten some clone-type Devil Fruit?”

Benn smirked, “Only a fool’s bet.”

Naruto blinked in surprise. “Already?”

The three older men turned to him.

“What is it?” Shanks asked.

“They are ready, I think, well either way, here goes.” Naruto stated as his hands flew into motion and a familiar phrase filled the air. “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!”

“Would you look at this place! Naruto-kun always brings us to such nice places. Now, where is that boy?” An elderly woman’s voice drifted out of the haze of displaced air. “Kichi-chan you don’t go wandering off now.”

“Fukasaku-jiji, Shima-obaasan, it’s good to see you, and thanks for coming.” Naruto said, an almost gentle smile crossing his face.

“Naruto, Bouya, why haven’t you come to see us lately! You haven’t summoned any of the toads as of late, we were beginning to worry.” An older man’s voice called out.

“Sorry Fukasaku-jiji, I’ve been kind of busy— Yeow! What did you do that for?”

“Don’t be an idiot. Being busy is no excuse.” The older voice admonished after landing back on the ground, the staff he had just used to hit the blonde on the head at his side.

“Have you been eating well, Naruto-chan? I’ve had a new set of that jerky you like set aside for you.” A small elderly-looking female toad stated before hopping up to land on Naruto’s shoulder and patting him on the cheek.

Naruto stiffened and winced. “Uhhhh… Thanks, Shima-obaasan.”

Shanks stared. These toads weren’t huge, they were short! Although they did look rather old… “So, these are the Toad Clan elders?”

Both of the elderly toads turned to face the group of pirates. “Who are these scruffy looking boys? You in some trouble here, Naruto-chan?” the male of the pair asked.

Shanks frowned, first the big one was trying to shipwreck him, and now this little one was trying to pick a fight?

“They are friends!” Naruto called out quickly and then motioned for his uncle to come forward. “I’d like to introduce you to Uzumaki Shanks, my uncle and Captain of the Red Hair Pirates.

“Uncle? He looks nothing like Minato-kun.” Fukasaku grumbled.

“Don’t be daft!” Shima chided. “He’s got the same blood hair as the girl Minato-kun was sweet on.”

Shanks perked up at this bit of information. “You knew Kushina-nee?”

“Oh, you remember Konoha’s Red Hot-Blooded Habanero then?” Fukasaku asked.

Shanks blinked. “Red Hot-Blooded Habanero?”

“Ah, that was the nickname given to Minato-kun’s girl. She had a temper, did the boy good. She kept him from getting into too much mischief.” The elderly toad explained.

“More like got him into more mischief,” Shima corrected. “He did care for her a great deal though.”

Naruto chuckled and continued. “Shima-baachan, Fukasaku-jiji, this is Benn Beckman, Shanks-oji’s first mate, and Yasopp, ship sniper, also members of the Red Hair Pirates. They’ve been helping train me while I’ve been here.”

Shima hopped down from Naruto’s shoulder and came to stand beside her husband with a smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you boys. I hope our Naruto-chan hasn’t been too much trouble.”

“Shima-obaachan!” Naruto exclaimed with a bit of a whine.

Fukasaku snorted before muttering. “More like dragging him into even more.”

Shanks chuckled. “Well, life on the Grand Line, particularly this sea known as the New World, never gets dull. Naruto has been trying to help me learn to use my chakra as well.”

Both of the elder toads turned to face the blonde who crossed his arms and met their stare. “What, I can teach!”

“So, how would you like a few pointers while Pa takes care of business with Naruto-chan?” Shima offered taking a few steps forward just as her husband turned and then jumped up to Naruto’s shoulder and gestured for him to head back toward Gamakichi.

Shanks blinked, and then glanced between his nephew and Shima. “Uh, if you think that’s best…”

“I do.”

Shanks let the petite toad-lady lead him back closer to his men and then to a place a bit further up away from the shoreline before following her guidance to get comfortable.

Naruto looked back over his shoulder to glance at where the three Red Hair Pirates had settled into a loose circle around Shima on the sandy beach. “Fukasaku-jiji, are you sure this is a good idea….”

“Silly boy, it will be fine. Ma just wants to get to know this new-found family of yours.” The old toad perched on his shoulder explained. “We really have been worried about you.”

Naruto sighed and nodded, “Yeah, I’m sorry for making you worry, this was just something I felt I had to do. And well Konoha…”

“It’s all right, Naruto-kun, we understand. Now, Gamakichi said something about the Nature Chakra here has Lady Tsunade and Sakura worried?”

“Yeah…” Naruto gave one last look toward his uncle and the others before focusing and settling down next to Gamakichi as he began to explain.


	46. Nature of the Sage

Nature of the Sage

By Silver Dragonfly  


* * *

 

 

 “Now, Shanks-chan, let’s get a look at you.” The lavender-haired toad said with fondness as she began to study the red-haired pirate captain.

Shanks winced slightly but stood patiently as the elderly toad woman looked him up and down. “Obaa-san, you really shouldn’t give a man such hope.”

The elderly toad huffed. “Oh don’t get too hopeful, boy. You aren’t my type.”

Shanks gaped.

Yasopp snickered and Benn chuckled.

“Now take a seat, you look tired standing up like that. You boys too.” She said turning to the other two members of the Red-Hair Pirates. “Especially you,” She stated, eyes focused on the First Mate, “I can’t admire you from way up there.”

Benn froze as he settled down on the sand. “Lady…”

“You can call me Shima, Cutie.”

Benn hesitated, “Forgive me, Shima-san, but I’m afraid to disappoint you…”

“Oh, let an old lady have her fun.” Shima cut him off, hopping to his knee and reaching up to give his cheek a squeeze. “I always did fancy longer hair on older men.”

Shanks and Yasopp both snickered to either side of the somewhat uncomfortable first mate.

The toad cackled as she hopped off the tense first mate of the Red-Hair Pirates. “Now then, Shanks-chan, Naru-chan has been trying to teaching you chakra basics?”

Shanks slumped, defeated. “Yes, Shima-san.”

“Well, don’t just sit there! Show me what you’ve learned.”

Yasopp snickered, and Benn smiled amused.

Shanks tossed a glare at his crew but pulled out the slips of paper he had taken to carrying around and started spinning them on the palm of his hand.

Shima chuckled, “Well, look at that. Looks like Naru-chan might make a teacher after all.”

Shanks blinked in surprise, but didn’t stop moving the slips of paper. “You didn’t think he could teach?”

Shima smiled, “According to his various sensei, Naru-chan has never been an easy student, and he always excelled best at practical application. It is nice to see that he is able to pass what he learned on. Now, you do have a problem.”

Shanks frowned. “Problem?”

“This,” Shima said, hopping up on his left kneed to poke at the cloak that covered his missing arm. “This damaged arm of yours, while physically healed, leaves your body and chakra network off balance. You seem to have adapted very well to it missing, but your chakra network has not. You will need to focus on channeling chakra into what’s left of your arm to rebuild the pathways there and help the overall flow become more balanced. This will improve your control immensely.”

Shanks blinked, Naruto had not even mentioned that his injury could affect his ability with chakra.

“Naruto never mentioned the Captain’s injury possibly being a problem.” Benn stated with curiosity in his tone.

Shima chuckled, “No, I don’t suppose it would be something he’d really pay attention to. The boy is lucky he still has all his own limbs intact, a benefit to his burden.”

“You mean Kurama?” Shanks asked.

The older toad eyed him. “Just what do you know of it?”

Shanks smiled wryly, “We’ve met.”

The older toad met his gaze for several long moments, and then smiled. “You really do care for our Naru-chan, don’t you?”

The three Red Hair Pirates stilled, all ease leaving them.

“I’m slightly offended you would think otherwise, Shima-obaasan. Nakama, and in this case, family, is not something I, or my crew, take lightly.” Shanks said, his tone and expression deadly serious.

Shima met his gaze steadily, then she began to teeter slightly and Benn reached out a steading hand. “Captain, I don’t think Naruto would like it if you caused her to pass out. I believe your point is made.”

Shima roused and then began to chuckle. “Oh you are definitely an Uzumaki. Now, let’s see you start doing your spinning paper trick with that stump of yours.”

.:o:.

 “This place…” Fukasaku breathed, “And you say all this world is like this?” Fukasaku asked, as he looked out over the sea, his eyes edged with orange and glowing with the natural energy he had collected.

“Everywhere I’ve been, at least.” Naruto answered, resisting the urge to gather Nature Chakra himself. It was almost coming to him all on its own now. At his back, he felt Gamakichi giggle almost drunkenly.

“This is the good stuff.” The toad intoned his voice almost a sleepy haze, despite the giggles.

“Careful, Kichi, don’t want you becoming a permanent part of the scenery here in stone.” Naruto cautioned, a little worried for his friend.

Fukasaku glanced toward the younger toad and snorted. “He’ll be fine. Nature chakra has become a bit more sparse ever since the fourth Shinobi war. It will do him some good to get a good soaking of it.” The elder toad explained.

Naruto’s attention focused to the elder toad, “Jiji, you never said anything about that before!?” Naruto exclaimed, an edge of panic in his voice.

“Oh settle down.” Fukasaku admonished. “It’s not all that bad, and we are fairly certain after a few centuries it will return to normal. There was nothing you could do about it, and it wasn’t your fault, so we didn’t see a need to bring it up.”

“But Jiji…”

“Besides, you haven’t been visiting lately to find out for yourself.”

Naruto slumped fully against Gamakichi’s chest once more, Fukasaku was right, after all. Suddenly a warm tongue covered his head and down his chest into his lap.

“Kichi!” Naruto exclaimed in exasperation and disgust.

“You hould tabte thib air, Narubo.” The toad mumbled as he let out another contented sigh.

Naruto pushed the toad’s tongue to the side. “I’ll pass, thanks. Don’t feel like eating bugs and sand.”

Fukasaku hummed as he turned his attention fully on the pair and away from the horizon of sea and sky. “Naruto, you’ve been using Sage Mode here?” He asked, bringing the conversation back on topic.

“Yeah, a few times, like I told you earlier. Didn’t seem to cause any problems that I noticed.” The teen answered, a bit distracted by the large toad’s tongue that kept trying to drape itself over his face.

“What about your bijuu mode?” the elder toad then asked.

“Only once; seemed normal. Well, almost normal.” Naruto answered.

“Almost?” Fukasaku inquired.

“Those Devil Fruit abilities I told you about; it reacted kind of weird with them. This guy who’s a phoenix gets covered in blue flames, and his flames intertwined with my bijuu chakra. Was just weird. Then this Marine Admiral, who’s Devil Fruit ability is magma, had his arm turned to stone when I blocked his punch.”

Fukasaku blinked surprised. “Stone? Like those who turned to stone while trying to manipulate Nature Chakra?”

Naruto blinked, “No, it was different. Think Benn mentioned it being like volcanic rock.”

“Interesting,” Fukasaku said as he settled into thought. “Well, I don’t think using this world’s Nature Chakra in Sage Mode will do you any harm, despite its high potency. It might have more side effects if you use it while in bijuu mode, however. Even in our own world the blending of nature and bijuu chakra has a unique affect, I imagine it would be even more so here.”

Naruto hummed in thought and smirked. “Kurama wants to be made of fire.”

Gamakichi snickered.

Fukasaku blinked. “Of course he does. Now, let’s see this Nature Chakra in action, shall we?”

Naruto grinned and then settled himself as Fukasaku looked on and even Gamakichi seemed to take interest.

“Well then, that is interesting.” Fukasaku muttered as his gaze stayed on the blonde teen.

“What is it?” Gamakichi asked, eyeing his partner with renewed interest.

“The Nature Chakra of this world is trying to balance with his own with almost no guidance.” Fukasaku explained. “If he let it, it might mix naturally on its own—he might not even have to focus on gathering it.” The last bit was whispered in almost shocked awe.

Naruto opened his orange-shadowed eyes to reveal the familiar blue irises turned gold with horizontal black bar-shaped pupils. “That almost happened in Konoha when I was sitting for Sakura to take a blood sample.” He said quietly, slightly nervous now that full attention had been drawn to how Nature Chakra was reacting to him.

Fukasaku hummed in thought for several moments. “Well it’s unusual, and normally I’d say impossible, but you do have a knack for making the impossible possible. Regardless, I don’t believe there is any health risk beyond the normal balance requirement and you certainly aren’t going to turn into a stone toad anytime soon.”

Naruto let out a breath and grinned, relieved. He reached over to poke the large orange toad at his side. “Hey Kichi, let’s spar.”

“You’re on!” The toad responded and in moments had collected enough Nature chakra to begin the match.

Fukasaku chuckled: kids these days. He turned to head up the beach to where Shima and Naruto’s recently found family sat.

.:o:.

“Looks like Naruto-chan and Kichi are up to their usual antics.” Shima stated in amusement after a sudden thunderous clap of displaced air and several palm trees flew over the group sitting on the beach.

Shanks grinned widely as he watched the two orange figures flash from place to place, the terrain giving evidence to their movement seconds afterward.

“Sage Mode, right?” Shanks asked, his eyes following the pair as they vanished into the forest. He yelped though as a stick connected with the side of his head.

“Pay attention to what you are doing, boy. Your slips of paper are about to get away.” Fukasaku admonished as he landed lightly on the ground after his staff had connected with the side of Shanks head.

Yasopp snickered.

“So, you have determined that Naruto is not at risk using this ability of his?” Benn asked, eyeing his Captain who quickly snatched the bits of paper out of the air before reaching up to rub the side of his head and glare at the old toad.

“That’s right. The Nature Chakra is potent here in this world, but nothing that will really do him any harm.” Fukasaku replied.

Yasopp suddenly let out a low whistle. “For his size, that toad can really move.”

Shima perked up in interest, “You can sense their movements?”

Shanks grinned, “Ouch, that had to hurt. Naruto’s going to pay him back for that hit.”

The two elderly frogs looked at the three pirates in speculation as they all sat there, unmoving, though Shanks continued to move the slips of paper across what remained of his left arm.

“How can you sense what they are doing?” Fukasaku asked, curious.

“Naruto hasn’t explained Haki to you?” Benn asked.

“Haki?” Shima queried.

“It’s the use of ones will to sense the intent of those around you, both in and out of combat.” Shanks explained.

“Anyone can develop the ability with enough training, although some are more naturally prone to it.” Benn added.

“Interesting; that might help you overcome your handicap when it comes to using actual jutsu, Shanks-chan.” Shima stated.

Shanks perked up, “Help with my network being out of balance?”

“No, that will take time and a lot of work. She means using hand signs to help form the chakra for actual ninjutsu. You’ve seen Naruto using a series of hand signs before casting a jutsu?” Fukasaku asked.

“Those things have a purpose?” Yasopp asked, surprised. “Thought it was some sort of distraction from whatever it was he was really doing.”

Both toads stared at the blonde pirate blankly. “What, are you daft, boy?” Fukasaku asked.

Shanks snickered before he had to dodge another swipe of the old toad’s staff.

“So, the Captain will not be able to use the hand forms correctly as he is?” Benn asked, trying to prevent both the Captain and Yasopp from turning the conversation into a childish scuffle. It wouldn’t be the first time after all.

“That’s right. As I’m sure Ma has told you, the use of chakra requires a balanced flow of the energy. The purpose of the hand signals is to guide chakra into the correct forms; incomplete hand signals would not allow for the correct guidance and form.”

“No hand signals, no jutsu?” Shanks asked, a bit of disappointment in his voice.

“Not necessarily.” Fukasaku corrected. “It’s just much more difficult. True mastery of a jutsu for a shinobi usually leads to only needing a single hand signal or even none at all. You’ve probably seen Naruto do this with his shadow clones. There are some shinobi who have managed to use one-handed signals in place of the two-handed ones as well, but this is very rare.”

“So Captain will have a harder time of it.” Yasopp stated.

“Normally, I would say yes, but with this ability that you call Haki, well perhaps not as much as I would normally expect someone just starting out.” Fukasaku mused.

“So when do I start learning jutsu?” Shanks asked, grinning.

Both toads looked at him and then chuckled. “You need to build up your control and reserves first. You barely have enough to even try walking on water to start with, now.” Shima explained with a smirk. “Stick to your slips of paper for a while longer, Shanks-chan.”

The red-head wilted with a pout.

“Don’t worry Captain, I’m sure Naruto will have you running across the ocean surface with him soon enough.”

“A word of caution on that…”Fukasaku began.

“What is it?” Shanks asked, his attention focused on the older toad.

Fukasaku met his stare and then nodded, as if deciding something. “Do not try to match Naruto in power when it comes to chakra. You will die.”

Shanks frowned.

“Hey now! The Captain is no weakling!” Yasopp said, rising to his Captain’s defense.

“It has nothing to do with his strength or ability, Boy.” Fukasaku hissed back at the blonde pirate.

“Naruto-chan is a very special case. There is not one who could match him in terms of raw chakra strength in all the Elemental Nations.” Shima explained.

“Chakra is part of one’s very life. If you drain yourself to nothing, you burn away your very life force.” Fukasaku then added.

Shanks eyes had remained steadily on the two elderly toads throughout the discussion, not moving as they spoke. He spoke after a long moment, “I understand.”

Fukasaku met his gaze once more and then hmphed. “Good.”

At that moment all three pirates suddenly looked out at the ship.

Shanks sighed and rubbed his head. “There he goes again.”

Fukasaku and Shima glanced at each other: they had sensed the sudden flare of chakra coming from the ship anchored off shore. “Naruto-kun has a seal-work on your ship he uses to come and go from this world, correct?” Fukasaku asked.

“Ah, seems he has been called back home as he left just now. It has happened several times.” Benn offered by way of explanation. “Will you and Naruto’s large friend be able to stay without him here?”

“Oh, Cutie, you say such nice things.” Shima said with a chortle.

“Now Ma, we shouldn’t impose—” Fukasaku began, but was cut off.

“Don’t you ‘Now Ma’ me, when was the last time we went someplace nice.” Shima asked, cutting off her husband.

Fukasaku shrugged. “Well that’s that. Normally we would only stay as long as our summoner’s chakra and our own could sustain us; however with this world’s nature chakra and Naruto being the summoner… well, time shouldn’t be an issue.”

“So, Shanks-chan can keep practicing, and you nice boys can tell us some stories about your adventures.” Shima added, winking at Benn once more.

Benn rose to his feet, “I should check on the crew. Yasopp is good at telling stories, Lady Shima, Fukasaku-san.” And with that said, the first mate quickly vanished into the forest.

Shima sighed in disappointment.

.:o:.

“You want passage to West Blue?” The Captain of the merchant ship The Spiral Wind asked surprised.

Kureha eyed the man, slightly annoyed. “Is it really so surprising?”

The man blanched, fidgeting slightly. “No, of course not, but I thought you hated to leave the Grand Line.”

Kureha frowned and glared. “What are you implying?”

The man took a step back quickly, “Nothing at all, Kureha-sensei, I’m just surprised.”

Kureha rolled her eyes; the younger ones were always like this.

“My cabin is yours for the journey, of course.” The Captain said quickly.

Kureha’s frown shifted to a smirk at that, “How thoughtful.” She headed towards the quarter deck of the galleon style ship, eyeing the not so subtle spiral markings worked in everywhere in the woodwork. The only thing missing was the red background to truly make them stand out. She paused a moment and called back, “Send a message to Goldie-chan to wait for my return in Drum.”

She chuckled to herself as she heard a quick reply, and some nervous muttering from the crew. It was not fully staffed by family; few of the ships were these days. But those who sailed on a ship of theirs learned to not ask questions or they would be finding a new crew.

She sighed as she entered the Captain’s cabin, nodding at the tidy space before moving to peer at the stack of charts neatly rolled or held flat against the table.

“Kureha-sensei…” A voice spoke in the open doorway.

She glanced back to spy the ship’s first mate. “Captain said you would probably want to see the journals.”

Kureha sighed: more work. She accepted the leather bound book; its cover was embossed with the same markings that she had seen in the woodwork. 

“We’ll be leaving port as soon as the cargo has been settled.” The man then offered before giving her a brief bow and backing out of the room.

This was why she never traveled anymore, it always annoyed her. Sailing on a ship unaffiliated was always a bigger pain than it was worth, yet sailing with the clan… Just because she was one of the oldest living did not mean she wanted to be treated like an elder. She was only 140 years old; her mother had lived far longer than that.

Ah well, perhaps she was getting too predictable. She settled herself in a comfortable chair and began the process of opening the seal embedded in the cover of the journal. She best get caught up on recent events, there would be time to harass her younger clansmen later.


	47. Let’s Share a Drink

Let’s Share a Drink

_(tea time with the toads)_

By Silver Dragonfly

 

* * *

 

“So, Kichi, tell us about how you met Naruto!” Shanks called out after downing another cup of sake.

All around the Red-Haired Captain the crew was at leisure; drinking, eating, playing card games and generally having a good time. In the Captain’s immediate area, however, there was also a cluster of one very large orange toad and the two smaller toad forms of Shima and Fukasaku.

“Hmm, wasn’t that when he first faced Shukaku?” Fukasaku asked. “I seem to remember Gamabunta grumbling about getting sand everywhere for a few weeks.”

“That’s right.” Gamakichi said with a wide grin. “Naruto was a genin then and there was an invasion happening in Konoha. The kid got himself matched up against the jinchuuriki of the one-tailed beast, Shukaku.” Gamakichi chuckled. “When I arrived and met him for the first time, I thought he was just some brat who wanted to play.”

“How old was he?” Benn asked from where he leaned against a nearby tree, a bottle of wine at his side.

“Eleven? Maybe twelve, I’m not quite sure.” Gamakichi answered. “First thing I did, though, was try to blackmail him for treats. It wasn’t until a few minutes later that I began to see just what a mess he was in.”

“Fighting one of the jinchuuriki is not a small thing, then?” Benn asked again, always one to ask for the details.

“Oh, yeah. Facing a jinchuuriki for the average person is like entering a suicide match. They are a force of nature and the only ones who usually pose any threat to them are extremely talented jounin and S-class shinobi. The fact that Naruto faced Shukaku and came out of it alive, as well as saving his teammate, was impressive.”

“But Naruto is…” Shanks began but then stopped as all three toads turned their gazes on him.

“Naruto had only just begun to learn to use his tenant’s power then.” Fukasaku said quietly. “The seal used to bind the Kyuubi within Naruto is one of a kind and kept Naruto from drawing on the fox’s power subconsciously, with few exceptions.”

“He used it soon after; things got really bad; managed to summon Pops. Have to say I was impressed.” Gamakichi added, smiling at the memory.

“Who is ‘Pops’?” Shanks asked, from where he sat, relaxed, but attentive.

“Gamabunta, the boss of our clan, and a very large fellow.” Fukasaku explained. “I imagine Gamakichi will grow to match his size one day.”

“You mean this guy isn’t full grown?” Yasopp asked in shock, gesturing at Gamakichi.

Shima scoffed. “Boy needs to eat more.”

“So just how large is Gamabunta?” Shanks asked.

“Would you like to meet him?” Fukasaku asked, a gleam in his eye.

“Pops does love a good party.” Gamakichi said.

“You can summon him?” Benn asked, surprised.

“Easily; the potency of the nature chakra of this world is something special. That is for certain.” Fukasaku told them before his hands began blurring in a flurry of movement. However, before he could finish, he let out a sudden yelp. “Darn it, Ma, what was that for?” He asked rubbing his head.

“You summon Bunta-kun here without any warning and you’ll squish this entire crew like a grub under a rock.” The elderly female toad chided.

Gamakichi laughed. “She has a point, Ji-san.”

“Hmmm, well then.” Fukasaku muttered and then disappeared into the nearby tree line.

The pirates stared at where he’d gone, confused.

“Umm, is he coming back?” Yasopp asked.

Before Shima or Gamakichi could answer there was a rush of displaced air and debris.

“Jiji, what’s going on? Is the Gaki in trouble?” A deep voice rumbled from far overhead.

“Hey, Pops.” Gamakichi greeted the huge toad.

“Gamakichi… what have you done now?” The large toad rumbled, sounding annoyed.

Gamakichi squawked.

Shanks and all the Red-Hair Pirates stared at the pair of large toads.

Fukasaku chuckled from where he stood atop the larger toad’s brow. “You can relax, Gamabunta. Your son has not gotten himself into trouble; for now, anyways. We brought you to meet Naruto’s recently found family.”

The large toad rumbled and leaned forward to eye the humans all clustered below him. “Uzumaki Shanks, is it?”

“Ah, that would be me.” Shank’s said with a large grin. “The rest of these clowns are my crew.”

“Is that so?” The large toad rumbled in reply, his eyes shifting to take in the various humans scatted around the cleared space. “Where is the Gaki?”

Shanks grinned widely. “He seems to have been called away, but you are welcome to join our little party.”

“The boy has some decent stuff.” Fukasaku stated before he began hopping down to the ground once more.

Gamabunta chuckled. “Meeting new family over drinks is how it should be done.”

“Gamakichi-san was just telling us of when he first met Naruto.” Shanks said as several crew quickly ran up with large bottles and a jumbo-sized sake cup.

The large toad hummed in thought. “I believe that was just before he first summoned me to a battle.”

“That is what we were just telling them, Pops.” Gamakichi chimed in.

“What a mess: first fight with the Gaki and he brings me to a bijuu fight; reminded me of his father. But contract or not, I wasn’t going to get into that fight. It had taken me months to recover from that scrape with Kyubbi when the Gaki was just a tadpole.”

Shanks eyes narrowed. “You had a contract to come to his aid when called, but were going to refuse to help him?”

Gamabunta met the sudden glare. “We don’t fight with just anyone, contract or no.”

“Relax, I convinced Pops to help Naruto out. After all, the kid had saved me, and that Shukaku was a bully.” Gamakichi chimed in before the conversation could escalate.

“Damn brat always gets himself in the middle of a mess.” Gamabunta rumbled after that and took a long drink from the sake cup that had been poured for him. “Not bad. Reminds me that the brat still needs to share a drink with me; told him that the first time he summoned me.”

“So Naruto had summoned you before he got into that fight with the one-tailed person?” Shanks asked, intrigued.

Gamabunta eyed the redhead and took another long drink before answering. “Saved the kid from becoming a pile of goo at the bottom of a nasty gorge; thought for sure it had been Jiraiya’s doing. Couldn’t believe a little pipsqueak like him could summon me. Kid had guts, even then.”

“He surprised you.” Shanks stated in observation.

Gamabunta laughed at that. “Kid surprises everyone.”

“That, I would believe.” Shanks answered and then refilled the large toad’s cup.

Gamabunta hummed in appreciation. “Not bad at all.”

“A favorite from an island in the West Blue; it’s the first Island I can remember living on in this world.” Shanks explained, relaxing. The crew around them settled back into drinking and relaxing now that the shock of the large toad’s arrival had worn off.

Benn wondered, not for the first time, what it was about drinking with Shanks that seemed to put others at ease. The man hardly had to do anything and those he invited to drink with him were frequently spilling old stories and secrets.  He had often wondered if it was a side-characteristic of those with the ability to wield Conqueror’s Haki, but no other known users seemed to share it.

His attention was drawn once more to the group of various toads and their conversation as stories continued to be exchanged and with each story that was revealed, there were more and more similarities he found between his Captain and Naruto. Was the ability to attract such trouble a genetic trait? Or, perhaps, it was just a certain personality type.

It was early dawn when Benn began to suspect that Naruto had set the crew up for a practical joke. The group of toads, who had spent the entire night sharing stories and partying with the crew, as well as drinking enough alcohol to make even Shanks himself black out, did not suffer from the symptoms of a hangover.

Gamabunta chuckled, his deep voice reverberating through the small clearing and causing cries of protest. “Sorry lot, if you can’t hold your liquor and be ready to fight come first light.” The large toad stated, obviously amused.

Gamakichi snorted, “They can’t use chakra, Pops.”

Gamabunta eyed his son. “Nonsense, I could sense the redhead all night.”

“Naruto has been teaching him.” Fukasaku commented. “And Ma gave him some pointers as well. He’s no Sage though.”

Gamabunta grumbled. “Well I better head back. Gamakichi, keep an eye on them.” And with that, and a _whoosh_ of displaced air, the largest of the toads was gone.

Shanks blinked blearily and pouted. “He drank my entire West Blue stock.” He stared at the space where the large toad had been sitting only moments before. “And what’s being a Sage got to do with being hung over?”

Fukasaku smirked, “The use of nature chakra harmonizes one’s own body and spirt with the world.”

“Meaning, Shanks-chan, it purges any remaining toxins from the body.” Shima added.

Shanks eyed the two elderly toads carefully. “How long?”

“How long?” Fukasaku asked, a bit confused.

“The Captain wants to know when he might learn to use nature chakra?” Benn interceded; knowing if he didn’t Shanks would likely draw it out.

Fukasaku frowned. “It’s not something that is taught lightly to those outside the clan. Even within the clan it takes great skill. You will have to have incredible control and mastery of your own chakra first. Without the proper control, you will die if you try.”

Shanks straightened and his lips curved up in a small smile. “I accept your challenge.”

.:o:.

It was several days, and many bottles and jars of sake later, when the Red Force sailed away from the island shore as it cut through the waves and out into endless blue.

Fukasaku and Shima watched the ship slowly shrink as it gained speed and distance.

“I like those boys.” Shima said, warmth her voice.

“Ah, they are good for Naruto.” Fukasaku agreed.

Shima let out another long sigh. “I haven’t felt this at peace in years. It’s no wonder Naru-chan has been improving so much. The nature chakra here would have that effect on anyone trained in the Sage Arts.”

“Nevertheless, it’s good he was cautious.” Fukasaku mused, then added, “Although it would do the clan good to spend time here.”

Shima hummed in agreement, “The young ones especially.”

The two elders stood together for a while longer, continuing to watch the Red-Hair Pirate’s ship fade from sight.

“That cutie Benn did mention this island was in Shanks-chan’s territory. Perhaps…”

Fukasaku eyed his wife warily. “Just what are you thinking about, Ma?”

Shima let her lips turn up in a small smile. “Oh, just planning for the future, Pa.”

Fukasaku harrumphed. “I’m going to go check on Gamakichi and that new training he started working on.”

“Of course, Pa,” Shima answered. “Come find me when you are ready to head home.”

Fukasaku watched as she turned and leaped off into the tree line and sighed. Well, there was no helping it now, he only hope Naruto and his uncle wouldn’t object.


	48. There and Back Again

There and Back Again

By Silver Dragonfly

 

* * *

 

After the days spent on Dokutsu no Takishima, day to day life on the Red Force settled into mostly familiar patterns once more. The Red Hair Pirates sailed the wide blue sea of the New World with an ease of practice and adaptability.

Sea kings were dispatched and harvested if the situation allowed; sea king meat being a staple food source on the Grand Line, after all.

Storms were weathered, or avoided if navigation was able to predict them far enough in advance, and repairs made as needed.

Rival pirate crews tended to either avoid the Red Hair Pirates at all possible cost or, knowing the Red Hair Captain’s reputation, come alongside the Red Force and propose a party.

Benn never really drank during these rival crew gatherings. Oh, he carried his bottle of wine, and he sipped, letting the chatter and party flow around him as he shadowed his Captain, but he never really drank to indulgence.

Shanks, for his part, was a bright splash of laughter and color during such gatherings; his boisterous attitude leading the rival crews to relax. As was the nature of getting drunk, inhibitions loosened and tongues began to wag. Information was gathered and rumors noted.

It was the nature of such things that some ships left the side of the Red Force with less crew, and sometimes none. Threats and spies were not taken lightly, after all. Benn made certain that any rumor the Red Hair Pirates did not want spreading ever left their ship. Shanks made certain those who would try to challenge the Drunken Yonko learned that, even drunk, the Red Hair crew was not to be trifled with.

More of the rumors began to focus on the name Uzumaki and questions about Shanks’ family. Many revolved around just where his crazy blonde nephew had come from and where he was now. These almost always struck a sour note with both crew and Captain.

Naruto had not returned for weeks.

Shanks laughed at it all in the company of outsiders.

When company was gone, he poured over the information with Benn and Yasopp, cross checking new information with what they knew was true and setting aside what they knew was false. Through it all, he trained. Bits of paper, corks from bottles, bits of rope and sail, all became the redhead’s  toys and could be found spinning around and over his shoulders, arms, back, legs and even in his hair.

Uzumaki, the Red Hair crew began to realize, was not just Naruto and Shanks’ shared name, but something that the World Government did not want known or recognized.

Benn sighed as he watched his captain and friend take his self-assigned post at the rail near the prow, watching out over the sea as dusk faded to twilight. He strode forward and leaned on the rail beside his captain, his own back to the sea as he looked back over the ship. It was a common pose between the two, each guarding and watching the others’ back.

Benn stood silent, smoking and waiting.

“Am I becoming predictable, Benn?” Shanks asked.

“If you think that, you haven’t been paying attention. You have them nervous.” Benn answered.

Shanks snorted. “It makes me uneasy. If they start hunting…”

“I think there is more to it.” Benn stated before Shanks could finish the statement. “The World Government is trying to figure out what you know.”

“Just as they did with Ohara’s scholars. If they think we know something that they really don’t want known…” Shanks said quietly.

“They just finished a war with one Yonko, they will be licking those wounds for some time.” Benn stated.

Shanks chuckled darkly at that. “Whitebeard wasn’t there to destroy them. His crew— his family— was always the priority. Old man went easy on them.”

“You would have done differently?” Benn asked.

Shank’s gaze shifted to Benn from the corner of his eyes, his pupils glinting in the dark. “If Ace had asked to join us all those years ago…”

“But he did not.”

Shanks sighed.

“You miss Naruto.”

Shanks winced slightly. “Brat got to us all. I don’t know how they can let him go at all.”

Benn smiled. “Probably for the same reasons you do.”

Shanks pouted, his serious mood finally lifting. “You never let me sulk.”

Benn rolled his eyes. “What do you want to do about it?”

Shanks said nothing for several moments, and then spoke quietly. “I want to see Uzu, Benn.”

Benn nodded, he had expected as much.

“Better keep training, then. I suspect the tree-climbing and water-walking abilities that Naruto displays so casually will likely be helpful in such a venture.”

Shanks eyes sparked with mischief. “Oh, I have that covered.”

Benn blinked then eyed his captain warily. “You have been waiting for his return to show off.”

Shanks sulked.

Benn sighed, “I will keep your secret.”

Shanks grinned. “Knew I could count on you, Benn.”

Benn rolled his eyes. “You know my price.”

Shanks chuckled. “Of course; wouldn’t dream of making you the target of any pranks I may or may not instigate with said new tricks.”

.:o:.

Naruto felt a tension he hadn’t realized he had been holding release as he arrived in the dimly lantern-lit hold on the Red Force. He stood there for several moments and breathed in the now familiar scent of the ship, the sounds, and the rocking motions that indicated she was at sea.

He wondered idly, if it was really such a bad thing that this ship was starting to feel even more like home than his apartment.  Then again, his apartment had never really felt like this exactly either. He loved Konoha, and the village itself was home; his apartment… well it wasn’t the same. He grimaced as he recalled the scrolls of legalities and stipulations Kakashi had dropped cheerfully into his hands during the first of several meetings with him in the last few weeks.

_“I hope you realize the amount of extra paperwork you are causing.” Kakashi stated flatly, not really amused._

_Naruto shrugged. “What’s so bad about applying for official Sage status? Ero-sennin never mentioned paperwork with it, and I would have heard about it those three years…”_

_“Jiraiya, enlightened soul that he was,” Kakashi began, “Did not voluntarily declare himself a member of every major shinobi village from the mounts of Rock to the waves of Mist.”_

_Naruto flinched slightly at the reminder of the clever, yet perhaps slightly short-sighted political mess he had created when seeking peace… and inadvertently ending his dream of being Hokage._

_Kakashi sighed. “No one is making a fuss about giving you all the privileges and freedoms of one formally recognized as a Sage, Naruto. It’s just each village has their own set of processes and all of them have to be observed.”_

_Naruto nodded and began to peer through the first scroll, and then frowned. “Kakashi-sensei… this says something about contracts and… a wedding?”_

_Kakashi perked up. “Ah, that one is a compiled collection of all the proposed matches we have received on your behalf.”_

_Naruto stared at Kakashi and blinked._

_“You seem to have become the most desirable bachelor in all the Elemental Nations, politically speaking at least. I’m told the Fire Daimyo’s niece has inquired about you quiet often. The young male nobles of the court are green with jealousy, according to the last courier.”_

_Naruto groaned. “I..”_

_“Fortunately, our laws prevent any such arrangements being decided on your behalf. The change of your official status to that of a recognized Sage also prevents any of the other villages you are now affiliated with from making any such arrangements as well.” Kakashi continued._

_Naruto sighed in relief, and then tensed again at Kakashi’s speculative look._

_“You will let us know if you would like to start a Harem? I’m sure it would be a great source of inspiration if you do plan to continue Jiraiya-sama’s work.”_

_Naruto glared at his once teacher and now leader._

_Kakashi’s pout was visible, despite the mask. “No? Well, you will need to write a formal, but polite, decline to each of those before you go flashing off to battle sea monsters with your uncle.”_

He had written the official responses five times over before they had been accepted as something that could actually be sent without causing political suicide. When he’d complained to Tsunade about it, she had just laughed and told him she’d had to make such statements from the time she graduated the academy, then asked if he had anything new for her.

Naruto had grumbled in response, but gave her the scroll with a selection of Shanks’ best sake anyways.

Naruto sighed at the memory and then stretched; looking around the hold once more before moving to head out into the corridor.

.:o:.

Benn looked up from the log and inventory books he had been reviewing as a now familiar feeling played across his senses. He quickly closed and put the books away before slipping out of the officer’s study and into the corridors of the ship. It was quiet, as silent as a ship out in the middle of the sea ever was, with all but the night watch asleep.  Benn sometimes found it both strange and oddly fitting that the crew which was so often loud and fully of energy could so easily settle into such times of quiet.

He focused on his objective with movements mastered by long practice. There was a flash of silver light on metal followed by a solid _thunk_ and a startled yelp.

“You almost took off my nose!” Naruto hissed in indignation.

Benn hummed in thought as he strode forward to remove his knife from where it was embedded in the wood of the corridor wall.

“So much for being aware of your surroundings; you haven’t been keeping up with your practice.” Benn chided, his tone serious.

Naruto blinked, “Uhh, yeah. Sorry, it was a little crazy…”

Benn snorted. “The Captain will be disappointed.”

Naruto slumped. “I…”

Benn rested a hand on the blonde’s shoulder, causing the younger man to look up. “He will survive. Welcome home, Naruto.”

Naruto blinked several times and then smiled.

“Thanks, Benn.”

“Tired?” The older man asked.

“Not really.” The blonde teen replied, “I take it Shanks-oji is sleeping?”

“He’ll likely pout that he missed your arrival.” Benn told him.

“Should I wake him?” Naruto asked, a little nervous.

Benn shook his head. “Let him sleep, morning will come soon enough. Come, you can help me with inventory.”

Naruto watched as Benn finished tucking away the knife he had just recently had a close encounter with, then followed after the older man.

Naruto waved to the lookouts as he followed Benn out onto the quarter deck and headed toward the officer’s study.

Benn motioned to the chair across the desk as he returned to his usual seat. “Coffee?” He asked reaching for the kettle kept on a low warmer.

“Ah, no thanks,” Naruto answered. “You probably don’t want to see me on coffee.”

Benn blinked.  “I would have thought it had little effect on you, seeing as how you don’t get drunk.”

“Yeah, it doesn’t really last that long… but it hits me hard and fast.” Naruto said with a shrug.

Benn arched an eyebrow. “That sounds like a story.”

Naruto shrugged. “I don’t really remember the details, only that Ero-Sennin banned me from ever drinking coffee under punishment of no ramen, at least with him.”

“Your late godfather, right?” Benn asked.

Naruto nodded.

“Here,” Benn said handing him a leather bound book. “Check the current stock values listed in here against this list here.” He said as he opened another journal to a page marked with a strip of thin silk. “If the stock is below what is on the list, we’ll need to add it to this list here for restocking.” He explained as he pointed to a loose parchment held in place by a metal weight emblazoned with the Red Hair Pirates’ Jolly Roger.

“Paperwork…” The teen said with a sigh.

Benn raised an eyebrow. “We may be pirates, but as you are well aware, this sea is merciless to those who do not heed it.”

Naruto nodded. “The less glamorous parts of any job, I guess.” Naruto mused.

Benn chuckled. “Shinobi have paperwork?”

Naruto nodded. “Mission reports.”

“Makes sense. Though I would expect it be a bit of a security risk to have all that information lying around.” Benn said, considering what the administration must be like for such a village.

“Most of it is sealed and requires your chakra and blood imprint on the key to open. I never really got very involved with it, but I was sort of apprentice Hokage in training until…”

“You don’t have to explain, kid.” Benn said.

Naruto blinked in surprise.  “You—?”

“Who else do you think Shanks whines at? He was rather distressed on your behalf that you had lost your dream.” Benn explained.

“He was?” Naruto asked, his surprise evident.

Benn nodded. “Now, are you going to get to work on that, or would you rather take over the watch shift?”

The teen grumbled but set to work going through the entries.

Benn watched him silently for several minutes and smiled as he set back to work himself. It was really something how quickly the blonde teen had wormed his way into the crew and family, for he had no delusions about what this crew really was to each other. It had not been until after Shanks and Naruto had started to bond, that he saw how much not having a tie to his past had shadowed the Red-Haired Captain. He would never tell Shanks directly about it, but he would do what he needed to make sure Shanks and Naruto didn’t have to lose each other.

 

 

 

 

 

 


	49. Following the Spiral Road

Following the Spiral Road

By Silver Dragonfly

....::o::....

Kureha glared at the docks from where she stood at the rail of the Spiral Wind as it pulled into port. The port itself had grown since she had last past through here. Back then the port had been small but growing, as trade was flourishing between West Blue and the Grand Line. She wrinkled her nose in distaste; she had never been fond of large cities and this one had grown too much for her to want to spend any length of time here. Too many people in one place just irritated her; it was why she liked her castle up in the mountains of Drum. She would have to keep the visit short.

“You don’t look pleased to be here, Kureha-obasan.” Captain Takumi stated from where he stood at her side; overseeing as his First Mate shouted orders and the crew scurried from place to place across the ship to bring it in to dock.

“How long will you be in port?” Kureha asked, ignoring his statement.

“Three days; we have cargo already waiting to be loaded. Will you be leaving with us?” He asked.

Kureha cackled. “You’ll find out.”

The Captain nodded, “Very well. You will be visiting the Shop?”

Kureha glanced at him from the corner of her eye. “I don’t want any rumors being started. I will share what I’ve found after I’ve confirmed it.”

“Of course, Kureha-obasan, I look forward to learning what it was that could bring you out of the Grand Line into the Blues.”

“Kureha-sensei,” The First Mate called out. “We are at port, if you would like to disembark before we begin to unload?”

Kureha nodded. “Restock the good stuff, Captain Takumi, and tell your Ship’s Doctor I’ll be inspecting his infirmary.”

With that said, she walked down the waiting gangplank. It really had been a long time since she had been to this island and port. The Clan called it The Gateway of the Lost.

.:o:.

“You aren’t going to replace me while I’m gone?” Shanks asked, his lips almost in a pout.

“The crew would mutiny if he tried, Captain.” Yasopp said from Benn’s side, nudging the taller man in the ribs. “Benn’s too much of a stiff without you.”

“This Stiff can have you on scullery duty for the next month.” Benn stated in response to Yasopp’s prodding.

Shanks eyed his first mate speculatively. “You will take care of my ship?” Shanks demanded, losing the pout.

“Without a doubt, Captain, she will be in as good a condition, possibly even better than you leave her.” Benn answered, taking Shank’s demand in stride. It was like he had never left them for any amount of time before.

“You won’t party too much without me?” Shanks then asked, the pout coming back.

“Impossible, Captain, you’re the life of our parties!” Rockstar chimed in from the loose crowd gathered behind Benn and Yasopp on the main deck of the ship.

Shanks looked skeptic for several long moments, and then turned to the blonde teen at his side. “You are certain that your toad will be able to stay the entire time we are gone?”

The small toad waved at the red-haired Captain from where he sat on Lucky Roo’s shoulder.

“Won’t be a problem.” Naruto said, amused by his uncle’s fretting.

“And that he will be able to get word to you if needed?” Shanks then demanded.

“Certain.” Naruto responded.

“You will keep an eye on him?” Benn then asked.

“You got it!” Naruto responded just as Shank’s also spoke. “Or course I’ll keep an eye on him.”

Uncle and nephew both glanced to each other, slightly annoyed.

“Are you sure we shouldn’t send someone with them?” Yasopp asked Benn, now a little concerned.

“It would take the entire crew, and that would kind of defeat the purpose.” Benn replied dryly before addressing his Captain once more. “Everything will be fine, Captain, we haven’t spent the last month and a half planning this for nothing. Anything we can’t handle, we will make sure we call you for. We are not the crew of a Yonko for nothing.”

Shanks opened his mouth to say something, but then apparently changed his mind, closing it again as his eyes swept over the gathered crew.

“You are planning something.” Shanks accused.

Naruto rolled his eyes; at this point even he could tell his uncle was just being difficult.

Benn sighed, and met his Captain’s gaze steadily. “You said you wanted to visit the island of your birth; did you change your mind?”

Shanks blinked, tensing for several moments before letting out a long sigh. “All right, fine. I leave them in your care, Benn.”

“We will await your safe return.” Benn replied, simply.

“Come on, Shanks-oji, we’ll be back soon.” Naruto said, amused and a bit excited, grabbing his uncle’s arm and tugging him toward the hold that held his seal array.

The crew watched the pair disappear deeper into the ship, none moving until suddenly both uncle and nephew had vanished from the sense of all with Observation Haki.

.:o:.

Shanks groaned slightly when they appeared in the small one bedroom apartment. “That… that was worse than getting caught in a hurricane with nothing more than a dinghy…”

Naruto snickered. “It’s not so bad when you get used to it.”

Shanks eyed his nephew. “You’ve never been sick while at sea, have you?”

Naruto shook his head.

“Ever been sick at all?”

Naruto shrugged, “I drank some bad milk when I was still in the academy… but no, not really.”

Shanks blanched at the thought of the bad milk; he’d stick to his booze.

“Make yourself at home.” Naruto said, “I just have to grab a few things and then I’ll take us to a marker I have in the region where Uzushiogakure used to be. We’ll have to take a boat to get to the ruins themselves.”

“That shouldn’t be an issue.” Shanks said as he glanced around the apartment, noting that it was simple, and uncluttered. A few personal items, but not much that made it what most would probably consider ‘homey’.  His eyes finally settled, however, on a large pile of scrolls. He moved to take a closer look, curious.

Quite a few of them reminded him, at least a little bit, of the scroll that had first connected him to Naruto and that he still kept with him. Others were covered in various official-looking seals and colored ribbons attempting to signify their importance. “What’s all this?” He asked.

Naruto stuck his head out of the bedroom doorway and groaned.

Shanks raised an eyebrow in question.

“Paperwork… I’ll have to deal with it all before we go back… probably.”

“Some of it looks pretty fancy.” Shanks stated, poking through the pile.

Naruto grumbled. “Politicians seem to think I’m someone of note since the last war. They keep trying to get me to back them. I throw most of them away.”

Shanks snorted.  Then a scroll that was not fully sealed rolled partially open. “’The following have been offered as potential partners’….” Shanks frowned slightly, “Naruto, are these marriage agreements?”

The teen yelped as a crash of what sounded like a bunch of the metal kunai and smaller shuriken hitting the floor filled the air.  Moments later Naruto exited the room, “I thought I took care of all those last time…”

“Last time?” Shanks asked now even more curious.

Naruto frowned, “I’ll explain later. Come on; let’s get going before someone realizes we are here.”

With that said, Naruto rested a hand on his uncle’s shoulder and the pair vanished in a golden flash of light, leaving the room unoccupied once more.

Only moments later, there was a flurry of footsteps followed by pounding at the apartment door.

“Oi! Naruto! You in there?! Oi! Answer me, Damn It!”

Several minutes of silence followed before the voice was heard swearing again as its owner drifted away.


	50. Gateway to the Past

The Shop, as Captain Takumi had called it, was in fact a peculiar little trade store that dealt in antiques, oddities, and last but not least, information. The Shop’s very nature made it the ideal place for local folk to bring in odd items they found washed up by the tides, and at the same time, to gossip. The small café that was next door further encouraged the gossip and information sharing. Neither business alone really drew particular crowds or much attention, but as the island itself served as one of the last ports in the West Blue before ships ventured out into the Grand Line, they did well enough. 

Kureha sighed as she sat on a bench on the edge of a small open green space, across from both The Shop and The Café, and patiently watched the traffic coming and going. She appeared very much like an older woman just sitting out to enjoying the fresh air and sun, while watching the people come and go around her, and for the most part, she blended in. Kureha was glad she had never had to spend any time working at either The Shop, or The Café, but she knew her visit would likely attract way too much attention if she just strolled in during the afternoon with the amount of steady traffic she watched passing by. Those who tended both would likely know her, and she did not want a lot of fuss made over her arrival. This also gave her time to take note of the small Marine guard post that was just to the south of her park bench at the edge of the open park-like space. The Marines were getting bold in setting up a post so close; after all, for those who knew what to look for, there was no question that both of the two businesses were Uzumaki establishments.

Like The Spiral Wind, the clan symbol was fashioned into not only the woodwork, but also the metalwork around both shops. For example, the metal brackets that held the signs showing the names of the two establishments had been artistically crafted with the spiral nestled in amongst swirly crests reminiscent of waves.  Likewise, a similar pattern was found in the metal braces of the chairs and tables that sat along the paved walk and open-air seating of the café.  Kureha knew that the woodwork surrounding the doors and windows would likewise hold such patterns.

She eyed the Marine post once more and cackled. It seemed like it may be time to remind someone in authority that the Uzumaki Clan was not to be trifled with, and to keep their less knowledgeable subordinates from overstepping themselves. Something she could recommend when she sent in an official report.

The afternoon drifted into evening and Kureha remained on her park bench, watching and occasionally reading through the recent news bulletins she had picked up from stands by the docks. The New World was certainly a hotbed for trouble. She had just reached an interesting tidbit regarding The Surgeon of Death being named a Shichibukai when she was interrupted.

“Hey, Granny, you’ve been loitering on that bench long enough. Time to head home.”

Kureha ignored the Marine.

“Hey, Granny, you hear me?”

Kureha simply turned the page in her paper. She inwardly smirked as she heard a grumbled ‘senile old hag’, and was about to speak when someone else spoke up.

“Do we need to file another harassment complaint, Lieutenant Maho?” The voice of a teenage boy asked as he strolled up the path to stand beside Kureha where she sat.

The marine sneered. “Ah, if it isn’t Rubeous-chan.”

The teen narrowed his gaze. “That’s ‘Rubio,’ and I guess I’ll tell Kaasan that report is needed, then.” He turned to Kureha, ignoring the growling form of the still lurking marine. “Obaa-chan, Kaasan has your dinner ready.”

Kureha eyed the teen bordering on young man, noting the familiar facial structure and messy untamed red hair, a smile spreading across her lips as she let out a cackle and then rose to her feet easily. “Dinner time, eh?” She turned a mocking look back at the still growling marine. “Run along, Lieutenant-chan, you are not needed here.”

The Lieutenant sputtered as the pair walked away across the park.

Kureha eyed the boy beside her, amused. “How long have they had that post here?” She asked once they were well out of earshot.

“They opened just before the War of the Best happened at Marineford. It became fully staffed afterward.” Rubio explained his tone soft so it wouldn’t carry, but clear enough for her to easily hear.

“Nothing has been done to remove it?” Kureha asked, curious of the answer.

“Nothing directly; with the recent rumors coming from The New World, we thought it might be wise to be cautious of drawing too much attention.” He replied.

Kureha snorted.

Rubio grinned, “I take it you think otherwise?”

Kureha eyed the now excited youth. “Oh, think you are up for it?” She asked, cackling once more.

Rubio nodded. “Lieutenant Moron back there has been harassing our staff and customers for weeks. I wasn’t kidding about the complaints.”

Kureha _tsked_ as Rubio opened the door of The Shop for her, and followed inside.

“Welcome to the Gateway, Kureha-obasan.” Another voice spoke.

“Oh, so someone does know who I am after all.” Kureha said, chuckling as she eyed the man standing by the service counter of the small shop. “Daimon-chan, isn’t it?”

The man smiled. “I had hoped I had outgrown that, Obaasan, but what has brought you out of Paradise?”

Kureha rested a hand on her hip and grinned. “Records from about 28 to 30 years ago.”

The older man cocked his head as he reached up to scratch a red bearded chin. “That was a messy time period. Lots of things washed ashore during those years.”

“Any recorded as Lost and Found?” Kureha inquired.

The man shook his head, “That I’m certain of. We found lost dead, but none living.”

Kurhea hummed in thought. “We will have to go through the gossip logs.”

The man’s eyes widened: that would not be the easiest of tasks. “Who are you looking for?”

Kureha’s eyes glinted. “A boy by the name of Shanks.”

If possible, the man’s eyes widened further as his mouth dropped open in surprise.

The teen, who had come to stand at Kureha’s side, almost vibrated with sudden excitement. “Then it’s true! He’s one of us!”

Kureha chuckled once more as she glanced at the excited teen. “That,” She paused, thumping the teen before he could start bouncing off the walls, “is what I intend to find out.”

.:o:.

As their small ship approached the island, it was obvious where the majority of the fighting had happened. What had once been the village’s port was nothing but rubble. The sea itself had reclaimed large areas; the only remains being the fragments of what had likely been towers sticking up out of the water. In other areas, the sea had pulled away from the shoreline leaving behind rubble and wreckage. Above the high tide lines, and at least a third of the way up into the cliffy shoreline, the remains of what had likely been trade and merchant areas were more intact, but still nothing more than broken stonework, tile, and faded gilding. Above that, however, whatever had crowned the cliffs at the heart of the once thriving village was completely gone. A gaping raw wound in the landscape that reminded Shanks of damage caused by his duels with Mihawk was all that remained. It left a sour taste in his mouth, and a feel of unease in his gut.

_All around him orders were being shouted, attacks launched, and people screaming. The earth shook and buildings groaned under the strain. The smell of smoke filled the air, making it more difficult to breathe; he filtered the smoke out as he had been trained at the academy. Hands on his shoulders guided him as he climbed into a small boat and was quickly set adrift._

There had been no time for goodbyes.

He hadn’t really understood that he was being sent away.

He hadn’t understood that he’d never get to go back.

Until now…

“Uzushiogakure,” Naruto said in almost a whisper.

Shanks pulled his gaze away from the ruins and focused on the sea that still stretched before them. “We will have to be on our toes to navigate through all that.” He stated, studying the swirling eddies, broken currents, and riptides as the water was pulled into the greedy whirlpools.

“I’ve got a plan for that.” Naruto stated with a grin. Shanks almost panicked as his nephew’s hands flew through a familiar set of motions to end with his palm flat against the floorboards of their small ship. He braced himself for what he was certain would be a very quick trip into the ocean, when a familiar voice spoke.

“It is good to see you again, Naruto. How can I be of service?”

“Oh, it’s Gamatsukai!” Shanks said in sudden understanding.

“Ah, Shanks-san, welcome to the Elemental Nations.” The toad said nodding to the redhead. “Uzushiogakure, is it?” He then asked spotting the island in the near distance.

“Yeah, I was hoping you could guide us to shore.” Naruto stated hopefully.

The toad’s eyes shifted to take in the swirling waters. “I know the old safe routes, but none of them would hold true anymore. They change regularly from what the Sea Toad clan told me while I was tracking Shanks-san.”

Shanks hummed in thought, then grinned. “Sounds like home.”

Naruto blinked, then smiled, “Yeah, the Grand Line does this sort of thing all the time, doesn’t it?”

“Was there anything else you needed, Naruto-san?” Gamatsukai asked.

“Nah, you can head back. Shanks-oji and I will take it from here. Thanks again, Tsukai!”  Naruto said, his gaze meeting that of his uncle before they both turned to face the waters before them once more.

The toad vanished without further word, leaving the Uzumaki pair.

“We should go now, before we lose all daylight.” Shanks advised after the toad disappeared.

“How many clones?” Naruto asked.

Shanks grinned. “None; just the two of us.”

Naruto looked at his uncle, eye’s wide. “Are you—” he cut himself off. “Right, Yonko of the New World.”

“Not just a Yonko, Naruto. I’ve been sailing the Grand Line as a pirate since long before you were even born.” Shanks admonished.

Naruto blinked. His uncle had not shared all that much of his own history with Naruto, except for his feelings regarding Ace and his relation to his former Captain. “Shanks-oji…”

Shanks grinned, “Later, after we reach shore.”

Naruto blinked and then nodded.

“You take the rudder; I’ll man the sail and give directions.” Shanks ordered moving toward the guidelines of their single sail.

Naruto moved to the stern of the small ship and the tiller bar waiting there.

“Ready?” Shanks asked, the guide-line of their mainsail slung over his left shoulder, across his back until it came out under his right arm along his ribs before going back up to the sail.

“Ready.” Naruto nodded adrenaline and excitement rushing through him.

Shanks gave him one last grin then faced forward and using his good hand unfurled the sail. The ship lurched forward as wind filled the sail, and in moments, orders began to fly. “To Starboard, 15 degrees on my mark!”

Naruto tensed, waiting as he held the tiller steady.

“MARK!”

Naruto shifted the tiller and then held.

“Port, 30 degrees! Now!”

Sea-spray crashed against the small vessel’s sides as it plowed into the wave and sliced into the next current.

“Hard to Port!” Shanks shouted as he shifted the angle of the sail and used the wind’s strength to help them break from one current and slip into the next.

“Hold at Starboard, 5 degrees!”

A sudden wave crashed over the ship’s side, and had they not been expecting it, would have likely caused both sailors to lose their footing.

“Starboard, 30 degrees! Steady!” And so the orders continued, both uncle and nephew working in tandem to bring their ship safely through the turbulent waters in order to reach their destination.

As suddenly as the course of riptide currents had begun, they ended, allowing the small ship to sail almost calmly toward the small bay that Shanks had chosen as their landing site. It was several miles east along the shoreline away from the broken harbor that had once belonged to Uzushiogakure, but it had none of the dangers trying to reach shore at the harbor would bring.

The small ship groaned slightly as it reached the shallows and slowed to a stop, the waves coming in around them continuing to splash and send spray into the air.

Shanks turned to look back at his nephew, his eyes bright.

“Go; I’ll make sure the ship is pulled up so she won’t drift.” Naruto said, smiling softly. “I can always find you with a quick Hiraishin after.”

Shanks studied his nephew for several moments.

“Unless you need my help getting up to shore; those old bones must be getting creaky.” Naruto teased, smirking.

Shanks huffed. “I’ll remember that one later, brat.” But he hopped over the ship’s rail and into the shallow surf, quickly wading toward shore.

Naruto watched him go, a strange feeling swelling in his chest. “Welcome home, Shanks-oji.” He whispered quietly.

…::o::…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the long delay in updates this winter. Life happened, and time for writing and editing/revising was just not as available. I can’t promise regular updates are resuming just yet, but it won’t be very long for the next one. On that note, Lost Uzumaki is 2 years old today! Thank you again for all the wonderful reviews, kudos, comments, favorites, and follows.


	51. A Link to the Past

A Link to the Past

By Silver Dragonfly  
  
…::o::…

Shanks was not really sure what he had been expecting as he stood at the edge of a sheer cliff and surveyed the ruins cascading down to the swirling water far below. He supposed he’d expected to feel something more than he had earlier when they had first sighted the ruins while still miles off shore. He could only watch silently, with a strange sort of disconnect as the sun began to sink below the sea along the horizon and cast all the rubble in quickly fading hues of gold and orange.

He knew, without even a flicker of a doubt, that this was where he had been born. That once, years past, this had been home. Perhaps there was still a trace of that feeling, but it was faint, and really nothing more than memory. When he thought of home now, he thought of the smell of the open sea, of the creaks and shifts of the Red Force, and the comradery of his crew. A crew— no, a family, that the nephew he hadn’t even realized he had was also now a part of.

He turned away as dusk deepened into twilight; Naruto was waiting for him, after all.

It was full dark by the time he reached the bay where Naruto had pulled their small ship up out of the surf and onto the beach.  It took him only a moment to locate his nephew a little ways further inland, and he quickly set out to find what was likely going to be their camp for the duration of their stay.

Naruto looked up from where he sat by the fire.

Shanks smiled easily in answer to the question in his nephew’s expression, and glancing around asked, “What’s for dinner?”

Naruto’s face shifted into a large grin. “Ramen!”

Shanks blinked, and chuckled. “I don’t think I will ever truly share your fascination with that stuff, but I suppose it will do.”

The teen enthusiastically mumbled something around a mouth full of noodles, that Shanks suspected was something along the lines of ‘Ramen is the best!’, but didn’t offer a reply as he picked up one of the waiting containers before him, then reached for the waiting kettle of hot water.

The pair sat in silence as they ate, the quiet only disturbed by the slurping of noodles.

Shanks eyed his nephew after a while; it was obvious the teen had something on his mind. He was never so quiet otherwise, and Shanks suspected he knew what it was that was occupying his thoughts. “What is it?”

Naruto almost choked on his mouthful of noodles and spent several minutes coughing before he could breathe normally and consider answering.

Shanks arched an eyebrow, “Well?”

“It’s just… this was your home, and … well it’s my ancestor’s home, but it’s not…” Naruto said, breaking off his thoughts before he could finish them.

Shanks reached over to ruffle his nephew’s hair, chuckling as the teen grumbled and dodged. “I haven’t told you about why I first became a pirate?”

Naruto shook his head.

Shanks leaned back and settled himself more comfortably. “Have anything good tucked away to go with the tale?”

Naruto rolled his eyes but pulled out a scroll and unsealed several bottles of sake, placing them within easy reach of the older man.

Shanks grinned and picked up one of the bottles, pulling out the cork with his teeth and taking a long swallow before he began to speak. “I was living on an island in West Blue after escaping the assault on Uzushiogakure and arriving in that world. I was alone and on the streets, constantly getting in and out of trouble, and almost always angry with those around me. My memories of Uzushio back then were still pretty clear, but I was lost and wanted to go home. I tried desperately to find someone who could take me back to that island, but no one knew of an island surrounded by whirlpools. Most laughed at me for it; the more kind ones tried to be nice about it… but I just got angry when they couldn’t help. It was my dream to find the Island only I seemed to know about… and that is when Roger found me.”

“The Pirate King, right?” Naruto asked.

Shanks nodded, and took another drink before continuing.

“Picked me up right out of a fight I was losing, and, once my opponents had scrammed, sat me down and asked me what I fought for; what my dream was.”

Naruto’s eyes widened at that, “He offered to help you…” he almost whispered.

Shanks smirked as he took another drink. “That’s right. So I became a cabin boy and apprentice to the man who later became known as ‘The Pirate King.’ He found me when I was lost and gave me direction.”

“But you couldn’t find Uzushio,”Naruto stated, his curiosity obvious at this point.

“We couldn’t find it. By the time Roger was executed, I thought it another causality of a Buster Call Assault by the Marines and World Government. But—” He paused then, eyeing his nephew in amusement as he took another drink.

“But?” Naruto asked, taking the bait dangled before him.

Shanks smirked and reached into his cloak, and after a moment pulled out a scroll, showing it to the blonde.

Naruto’s eyes widened. “That’s—“

“The scroll Gamatsukai first delivered.”

Naruto looked from the scroll to his uncle, both confused and surprised. “You kept it. Why?”

Shanks smiled fondly, “A piece of my childhood had just shown up from what I had could have sworn was a drunken dream. This was the proof it wasn’t my imagination. With this, and then later your visits, I began to realize that the island I had spent years searching for may still be out there after all.”

Naruto fidgeted, not quite sure what to say. This wasn’t like when he had defeated Gaara and taught him about precious people, or when he had made that bet with Tsunade to bring her back to Konoha. Those had both been, in a way, about survival; saving those he cared about. But this, this was different. This was someone he had not even known about and one he himself had searched for on the tiniest chance he might have clan and family still in the world. A hope he had desperately needed after Jiraiya had died. And, eventually, he had not only found this someone, but also brought them back home.

Shanks nodded. “You’ve helped me reach my original dream, Naruto, thank you.”

Naruto blushed in embarrassment, sputtering, “But you—I mean--- but you…”

Shanks laughed brightly, and then finished off his open bottle. “Don’t worry, I’m not about to give up my life on the Grand Line. This may be where I was born, but home is the Red Force.”

“They are your dream now.” Naruto said quietly.

Shanks turned to him and held his gaze steadily, his expression soft and warm. “Don’t worry, Naruto. You will find your own dreams again.”

Naruto sighed in exasperation, but relaxed and leaned back on the bedroll he had laid out earlier, looking up toward the stars. His heart swelled and ached at the same time, as he remembered doing similar activities with others he considered family. He only hoped he wouldn’t have to lose Shanks like he had lost some of his surrogate family

“I’ll take first watch.” He said after several long moments.

Shanks hummed in agreement as the pair fell into comfortable silence for the night.

.:o:.

Early dawn light found both red-head and blonde standing at the same cliff edge that Shanks had stood the previous evening, watching as the sun’s light slowly reached over the rest of the island to paint the ruins in hues of pale pink and gold before reaching full daylight.

“I’m surprised there isn’t much left except broken stone.” Shanks said, as they looked down over the ruin and rubble. “Even after all these years, I doubt nature would have left so little of the people themselves.”

“When I told Baa-chan that we were planning to come here, she told me a bit about what to expect. Even though the help sent by Konoha arrived too late to prevent Uzushio’s fall, they made sure that the dead were properly put to rest. And, well, shinobi horde their secrets jealously; whatever the attacking nin didn’t make off with, Konoha probably took or disposed of.” Naruto explained.

Shanks frowned. He understood the concept, but something about the lifestyle bothered him.

“Come on,” Naruto said after another few minutes, “There should be a memorial further inland just past the ruins.”

The pair traveled quickly as they found what remained of stone lined pathways and stepped terraces that were slowly being overtaken by vegetation. The paths branched out several times, some heading deeper into the city while others continued to lead down to a valley hidden behind the seaside ruins. Shanks found himself pausing often as they came to the split paths, his eyes traveling into the city, though often as not, collapsed buildings blocked the paths. Each time Naruto waited quietly, but was always ready to continue once Shanks himself moved forward again.

It was after passing through a vine-covered archway far below the rising terraces, now behind them, that they found the memorial.

The path leading through the arch spread out into a paved path that eased around a large stone spiral which started out low near the ground and rose up to meet a center pillar. Across the stonework’s surface names were inscribed filling the space.

The two Uzumaki walked along it slowly, fingers lifting to trail lightly across the names as they moved in and around the spiral.

“So many lost,” Shanks whispered, his tone somber.

“There is a monument for those who have been lost serving Konoha as well,” Naruto said as he stopped and looked at a set of names more closely. “When I first graduated from the Academy, Kakashi-sensei told us it held the names of the village’s heroes.” He paused, a wry smile gracing his lips, “I told him I would make sure my own name was added. It was then that he told us they were those who had fallen in battle.”

Shanks glanced at his nephew, “You were a real brat, weren’t you?”

Naruto turned, glaring at his uncle for a moment, before his focus returned to the stonework before them. “It was later on that I went back and studied all the names for hours, trying to find my family, to find Uzumaki.”

Shanks reached out to rest his hand on Naruto’s shoulder. “You found them.”

Naruto traced another line of names, and smiled softly once more. “Yeah, I did.”

...::o::...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LU 2 year Anniversary! Two updates in one day!


	52. Sealed Elements

They had spent the rest of the day going over the names on the memorial. Naruto had watched silently when Shanks found his own name and stood frozen, unmoving. Naruto had been about to speak when the older man pulled his sword loose from its sheath, revealing just enough of the blade to nick the pad of his thumb before letting it slide back home. He pressed his thumb to the center of his name, and watched it glow and then slowly fade from the stone.

“How did you…” Naruto asked, eyes wide.

“The stone is of Uzushiogakure, the village knows her people.” Shanks whispered, the words slow and said with a certain nostalgia.

Naruto blinked once, his eyes still wide in both surprise and amazement. “You remember it?”

Shanks shook his head. “Only bits and pieces, but this… this also just felt right.”

Naruto understood what his uncle meant with the statement. He had come across that feeling of ‘just knowing’ himself; sometimes, when learning a new jutsu, or when he began to really get into fujinjutsu.

They decided to spend their second day on the island of Uzushio going through the fallen ruins and looking for anything else that ‘just felt right’, as Shanks had put it. Naruto hadn’t been sure they’d find anything, but he had been excited to look regardless and so far, their search had been moderately successful.

This venture led them to various activities in the ruins, including clearing a damaged fountain of debris and then watching as water began to flow from the damaged stonework at its center and fill the chipped and cracked basin. They had been able to identify that some old fujinjutsu was responsible for the event, but not able to determine its extent or source.

They found similar traces of things throughout the ruins that were obviously powered by seals, but nothing that was left undamaged enough to restore as the fountain had been. That is, not until they reached what looked like it may have either been an academy training ground or just a plain playground for children.

Stone forms that resembled various creatures filled the area, many of them somehow untouched by the damage that filled the fallen village.

“Monkey… Hare… Boar…” Naruto began to name the creatures as he walked around, slowly picking up pace as he went. “Horse… Tiger, Ox, Dragon, Dog… they’re the hand seals!” Naruto exclaimed, eyes going bright with excitement.

Shanks chuckled at his nephew’s enthusiasm, and then paused, standing next to the one that did in fact resemble a dog. “It’s more than that…” he whispered, bits of memory trickling to the surface. “It was a game…”

He crouched down and ran his finger along the fine dirt that lay around the statue’s base, some of it clinging to the tip of his finger. He then traced a swirling pattern onto the dog’s chest, the stone glowed a faint golden brown as he did so. Once he removed his finger the entire statue glowed with the faint brown light, the mark showing bright on the statue’s chest. Shanks studied it, memories continuing to trickle through. “It’s a training exercise… but also a game… meant to help us learn the very basics… of sealing…” He said, the phrases coming slowly as he pulled the information from memories long buried.

Naruto came over to study the statue with its glowing figure. “You used chakra to infuse the soil and it became the medium of the seal you wrote on the statue.”

Shanks blinked. “Huh.” He hadn’t even thought about what he was doing, just did what had felt right.

Naruto glanced up at his uncle with a grin, “Seems you remember more about chakra than you realized.” He then turned back to studying the still glowing seal once more. “Earth and Dog… it’s a foundation seal, one of the most basic that are used when building anything else with fujinjutsu.”

Shanks looked around, feeling like there was something else he should do. His eyes settled on the dragon shaped statue and he repeated the pattern for Earth on the chest of the Dragon. Just as with the Dog, the statue glowed with the same golden brown light. He moved on to the next, the Ox. The motions were coming almost instinctively now and no sooner had he finished the third than he moved on to the Ram. When the Ram, was complete, the four with glowing sigils all pulsed brightly before the glowing light sunk into the ground and traced invisible lines to a large metal circle inlaid on the ground at the center of the clearing before moving to a smaller circle set in the center of the larger; the symbol for Earth now glowing brightly within it.

Naruto looked from his uncle to the glowing circle. “How…”

Shanks shrugged. “It... I think I spent a lot of time as a child doing this.”

Naruto looked around the clearing full of statues once more. “I’ve never really been good with theory; always been more hands on… but when I first started learning fujinjutsu, the scrolls I used to study from went on and on about elemental affinity’s but never really explained it… but when I worked on the actual seals, things just fell into place and made sense. I never really thought too much about it… but this… this feels like it matches that.”

Shanks looked down at the large circle and noted the four remaining discs that were the same size as the one now glowing for Earth.  He looked up and around the clearing once more, spotting a basin directly to the north of the large circle, he went into motion once more.

He dipped his fingers in the shallow water the basin held before approaching the Rat statue. In moments, a new symbol was drawn and glowing with blue light. He moved onto the Pig, drawing the seal on the stout animal’s side, and as when he had finished the Earth symbol on the Ram, both the sigils for Water on the Rat and Pig pulsed brightly before traveling toward the central circle and spilling into the northern-most inner circle and setting it alight.

He paused then, trying to remember the next step as he surveyed the clearing further, noting Naruto’s gaze on him watching intently. “Fire…” Shanks muttered as he continued to search the clearing for something that would help.

“Maybe you need to just use chakra, since fire isn’t exactly something that can be touched, well usually anyways.” Naruto offered.

Shanks frowned, it was true, but something about it didn’t feel right. Then his nephew’s word choice caught his attention. “Usually?”

“Well yeah, fire jutsu and stuff.” Naruto answered, suddenly fidgety.

Shanks eyed his nephew, but decided he would pursue it later as the current puzzle held his attention. Then he remembered.

He quickly moved directly south of the basin where he had found water and began to brush away debris and loose dirt. Naruto came to help after a minute and it didn’t take long for them to uncover a small pit. “There used to be some sort of brazier that was kept here, always lit.” Shanks said as he studied the small space.

Naruto brushed away some more dirt and then grinned as something caught his eye. He focused carefully and channeled chakra into a nearly invisible marker on the ground. Orange spirals filled the space, suddenly glowing with heat. “That— is cool.” Naruto stated, eyeing the Uzumaki clan spiral that glowed as if made of embers. “Simple to use, but a pretty complex seal design.”

Shanks picked up a dried out stick that lay nearby, poking his nephew in the shoulder with it. “Show off.” He stated before pressing the tip of the stick to the glowing spiral long enough for the sticks tip to glow orange then moved toward the Horse Statue. Once again he drew marks on the chest of the statue, soon completing the base seal for Fire and leaving red glowing lines as he moved on to the Snake. It only took a few moments before the glowing red lines joined together and filled the waiting circle at the center space.

Naruto grinned, “Wind next?”

Shanks chuckled, but nodded.

“How will you add wind as the medium?” Naruto asked.

“Incense. Have any?” Shanks answered.

Naruto frowned but shook his head no, “Never needed to have it on hand before.”

“Maybe we can find some laying around, if the weather hasn’t destroyed it over the years.”

It was at the Eastern most edge of the clearing that they got lucky. They found a large stone storage bin, its cover still in place. When opened, it revealed neatly tied up bundles of incense stored safely away from the elements.  Several bundles were completely crumbled, and large piles of what looked like dust filled the bottom of the container.

“Guess they kept this place pretty well stocked.” Naruto said quietly as he found a few intact sticks and pulled them out before putting the lid back in place. Shanks took one of the slender sticks from Naruto and then returned to the seal brazier they had uncovered earlier, using it to light the incense before heading toward the Rabbit statue. Shanks concentrated carefully guiding his chakra up the slender stick as he ran it just a breath away from the stone surface, allowing the faint trail of smoke to touch the stone before it rose into the sky. Pale green light glowed steadily in the character of Wind when he finished.

“They taught this in the academy here then?” Naruto asked as he watched his uncle, now finished with the Rabbit move toward a sitting Tiger.

“I’m not sure academy is the right word for it,” Shanks explained. “The memories themselves are fragmented, and it’s the feeling of it more than anything. But, I do remember mastering this having some special importance.”

“I would have sucked at this as a kid.” Naruto stated his eyes following trails of pale green light as the second Wind seal was finished and moved to join the others in the center circle leaving only one smaller circle still dark within the large one.

Shanks glanced to his nephew surprised by the almost bitter tone his statement was filled with. “Why do you think that?”

Naruto sighed, but then shrugged. “Chakra control, the precision needed for this… It wasn’t until after I had started to master Nature Chakra that my control really got anywhere near good enough.”

Shanks considered this, but he really had no insight to offer. “Hand me a kunai?” He asked instead, placing the still smoldering incense stick in a tiny hole that was obviously meant for it along the edge of the pale green glowing disc in the center.

Naruto pulled out the requested weapon, “Shouldn’t the last one be Lightning, not Metal?”

Shanks looked at his nephew amused by the question. “You really think they would have children playing with lightning for a game?”

Naruto shrugged, he would have done it, even if he did get shocked.

“It’s symbolic, and metal can be used to help guide lightning.” Shanks offered as further explanation as he headed toward the first of the last two statues, the Bird.

Just as the tip approached the stone, sparks began to fly between metal tip and stone work, back and forth leaving a glowing white line as the tip was used to trace the seal for Lightning. It remained crackling when complete; the light it glowed with was almost glittery in nature. Shanks glanced at Naruto and smirked at his wide-eyed look.  He moved on to the final statue and began to mark the Monkey just as he had the Bird.

With a crackling shower of light, the final seal was finished and the light sparked as it crossed the ground before reaching the only remaining round disc and the symbol for Lightning appeared, just as the others, glowing white.

The outer circle pulsed several times and then there was a shift as the stone circle made a groaning sound before slowly beginning to rise. Shanks and Naruto watched, tense and nervous, Shank’s hand rested on his sword hilt, while Naruto already had a kunai in hand.

A foot into the air and the round slab of stone ceased moving. Shanks and Naruto crept forward, studying the spaces revealed. Inscribed in the stone all around, but previously hidden by the ground, were the words ‘Fujinjutsu Apprentice Level One’. Below the words were twelve small recessed shelves, and in them were scrolls.

Or well, what remained of them.

Naruto let out a pained noise as the first one he touched fell apart. Shanks’ first attempt to retrieve one didn’t fare any better. And every one of them had signs of water damage, or the remains of dirt and leavings of small animals.

“I know they had to be beginner stuff… but to find this and then have it fall to pieces…” Naruto said quietly, the feeling of disappointment and loss evident in his voice. The teen crouched down and tried to carefully lift another scroll from its resting place, this one remained in one piece though bits of debris fell off it as he lifted it gently. No sooner had his hand with the scroll cleared the stone form then there was a loud click and the entire structure sunk down into the ground once more.

Naruto focused on the tattered looking scroll in his hands and carefully unrolled it. The faintest remnants of ink filled the surface, but it was unreadable. At the best of places, it was so faded that you could hardly tell ink had been there in the first place, in others it had smeared, blotted and ran.

Naruto groaned in disappointment letting himself sink to the ground in a slump.

Shanks reached out to rest a hand on his shoulder. “The fact that this clearing remained intact is miracle enough. Uzushiogakure was victim to an attack that intended to destroy her completely, that much is clear both from what your history has recorded, and the signs of damage we have found here.” He said as he studied his nephew’s slumped form. “I am glad we found this despite the knowledge that is lost.” he said, turning his gaze to pass over all the statues once more, the glowing lines that he had drawn earlier now all faded from sight. “Come on, we should head back to camp: eat some of that ramen?” He suggested, smiling.

Naruto perked up at the word ramen and then gave the clearing another long look. “Yeah, that sounds good.” He said, though it was apparent his mind was still on the puzzle of the clearing.

Shanks poked his nephew in the side, “Don’t tell me you are losing interest in ramen?”

Naruto turned his full attention to his uncle, his expression twisted in shocked horror. “How could you even suggest that?!”

Shanks laughed and exited the clearing, Naruto quickly scrambling back to his feet to follow.


	53. Birthright of the Lost

Birthright of the Lost

By Silver Dragonfly  


...::o::...

Shanks blinked sleepily and yawned as his gaze and senses swept across the small clearing he and Naruto had made camp in while they stayed on the island of Uzu. He didn’t necessarily like what he found, though he wasn’t really surprised. He had, after all, noticed several occasions upon which Naruto had been presented a new puzzle or exercise to master, and in each of those occasions the teen had pursued the exercise to the point of fatigue and even injury to see it finished or mastered.

He glanced across the clearing to the clone heating water over the fire for the morning’s round of ramen.

Shanks eyed the clone speculatively. “He’s back at that clearing, isn’t he?” Shanks finally asked after several long moments.

The clone looked up, eyes wide, laughing nervously, “Uh, what do you mean ‘he’?”

Shanks narrowed his gaze at the clone and frowned. “I have been able to detect your clones for months now. I’m surprised you even thought such a trick would work on me.” Shanks stated then let out a sigh, “It’s much too early in the day to be murdering my nephew.” He followed this statement by flicking a nearby pebble and watched with satisfaction as it hit the clone like a bullet between the eyes, causing it to yelp as it dispersed.

Another clone strolled out of the forest edge to replace the first in tending the kettle. “Was that really necessary?” The clone asked.

Shanks shrugged. “He was foolish.”

The clone glared at him, but set about pouring out the water, first into a waiting cup of instant ramen, and second into a waiting cup for tea.

Shanks was amused, but not surprised, by the order of priority: ramen and then tea. “So what exactly is he trying to do?” He asked the clone.

The clone shrugged. “Not sure at this point. He wasn’t really sure when he summoned us and we haven’t had any updates from him since then. Just orders to keep watch.” He said while moving around the clearing to deliver the cup of tea to Shanks.

Shanks accepted the offered tea, sipping as the clone moved back to get the waiting ramen.

The clone continued on with its business, tidying the camp and banking the fire for the day before it gave him a wave and disappeared into the forest edge once more.

Shanks watched the clone go as he continued to sip his tea before moving on to the waiting ramen and let his mind drift.

It was strange, he thought, to be separated from his crew and not in the Grand Line. He had taken short shore-leave trips away from his crew in the past— usually to visit Mihawk— but they had always been just on the edges of his Observation Haki if he focused. But this was different, and he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about it. He wasn’t really worried; after all, they had Benn to keep an eye on them, but they were his crew, his friends, and his family. Family was here in this world as well, Naruto had drifted into his life like a lost boat at sea, and Shanks had latched on to the treasure it had held quickly.

He had enjoyed their trip through the Elemental Nations so far; it was a pretty country and reminded him of several islands he had visited in the past. Yet, it was missing something that he had learned to love in his life on the sea. It was that something that he now knew would always call him back. Even if Naruto chose to stop visiting, Shanks would never come to the Elemental Nations except to visit, though he suspected he wouldn’t need to worry about Naruto not returning to the Red Force… and on that note he should probably make sure his absent-minded nephew didn’t blow himself up, along with the rest of Uzu.

It didn’t take him long to return to the now familiar ruins of Uzuhshiogakure. Once there he moved through the rubble and fallen buildings to return to the Fujin test clearing they had found the previous day. He slowed as he approached the area, reaching out with his Observation Haki to determine if it was safe to enter the space without some advance warning. What he felt had his eyes opening wide, as he quickly moved past the last obstacles of rubble to see it with his own eyes.

The entire clearing was alight with glowing fujinjutsu, and interspersed amidst it all were clones of his nephew, each one focused on their individual tasks.  Each of the statues had a clone sitting before it with the seal glowing in the air between the statue and the clone.  Scrolling lines flowed between and around them all, meeting in cardinal points with another clone at each anchor point. In the center, the stone slab was once more raised from the ground, unlike the short foot or so it had risen before, it now rose closer to six feet, its entire form covered in glowing seals. It was at this centerpiece that he identified the single non-clone of the group.

Shanks watched as the blonde teen moved slowly around the stone pillar, a brush in one hand and a dish of ink in the other, eyes focused completely on the faintly glowing lines his work was leaving on the stone. Shanks let his eyes travel over the elegant lines, how they interacted, how they moved around and through each other. How this one anchored those, how these added guidelines for this one over here, how this group all worked together to achieve this, and then he understood.

He, who had never had any formal training, found himself beginning to understand how they worked, why they worked, and what was needed to make them. He could not sit down and start doing what Naruto was doing at this moment, he would never be able to in fact, but he found he understood it regardless.

His nephew was recreating the very seal that had created the puzzle. Shanks was certain now that the original had been the work of several masters of fujinjutsu. Naruto was doing it all himself, and if Shanks was interpreting correctly, enhancing it and adding more. It was amazing, beautiful, and perhaps a little scary, just how much talent his nephew had; who while technically still a teenager had perfected his craft to master’s level.

It was in the same moment that Shanks came to this realization that all motion within the clearing came to a stop. The seal work pulsed, once, twice then faded from site, the clones vanishing in a cascading series of pops and displaced air. As the light faded the stone pillar at the center, it began to sink downward just as it had the day before, disappearing into the ground until once more, it rested flush with the ground around it, a circle of stone inlaid with five discs of lighter color.

Shanks looked from the stone in the ground up to his nephew who stood above it, looking downward, a satisfied smiled on his face. “That is incredible.” He stated quietly, catching Naruto’s attention.

The teen looked up, startled, and then blinked before blushing. “Umm, well… you, I wanted to understand it and I’ve always—“

“Learned best hands on. You completely rebuilt the entire piece, and even added to it.” Shanks stated, cutting the teen off. “You did in a single night, what others probably took days if not weeks to build.”

Naruto rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed by his uncle’s focus on what he had just done. “I just—“

“Have you slept at all?” Shanks asked, cutting him off yet again.

Naruto blinked, surprised by the sudden change of topic. “Uhh no, I couldn’t stop thinking about the seal and, well, sometimes it just happens when I’m working on something.” He offered in way of explanation.

Shanks shook his head in amusement, “Let’s get you some breakfast before your clones eat all of it.”

The blonde yelped and then grabbed his uncle’s hand to drag him along behind him, grumbling as he went. “Those bastards… I warned them about eating my ramen, like I wouldn’t know they had done it….”He all but growled under his breath as they went.

Shanks laughed, the antics of his nephew’s clones always causing mischief and entertainment.

.:o:.

Kureha chuckled as she poured herself a glass from the bottle Captain Takumi had offered her with a flourish after she had boarded The Spiral Wind once more.  She had grinned and told him to put her newest traveling companion to work while they were on board.

Captain Takumi and Rubio had faced each other for several long moments before grins broke out on both their faces.

“So my little brother is finally being let out to play?” Captain Takumi said, amused.

Rubio grumbled at being called little, but mostly ignored his older brother’s jibe. “Aunt Belle is mad that you didn’t come to see her. She said to tell you that floating around on a wooden toy is not an excuse for not visiting family.”

Captain Takumi grimaced, The Spiral Wind was no wooden toy, but it was well known how Aunt Belle felt about sailing. She had traveled to the Gateway of the Lost while pregnant, and the experience had left her with very strong feelings about ever sailing again. “Go find Tiberious, you know my first mate, and get to work, brat.” Then he turned back to Kureha, “Obasan, my cabin is yours once more. Please, make yourself at home and I will join you to discuss things once we are underway.”

That is exactly what she had done. He had heeded her request to stock up on the good stuff and now she could start compiling all that she had learned into a formal report to send back to the home island. Arrangements would need to be made, and contact established.

She had learned, through pure chance and luck, that Uzumaki Shanks had arrived at The Gateway of the Lost, and before being found had been picked up by Gol D. Roger. From that, and his lack of claiming the name Uzumaki, he had completely slipped past detection by the Uzumaki clan. They would have to remedy that fact, as they never abandoned their own. Then there was the new blonde, the one who had revealed that the famed Yonko was in fact one of theirs. He was still a nearly complete unknown. From all reports, he was young, but incredibly strong. But one fact was certain, this new blonde who claimed to be family, had never passed through The Gateway. This brought on further questions and possibilities; things Kureha wasn’t even sure she wanted to fully consider. They had built and thrived here in this world, but she knew there were those that continued their search for a way back.

The Uzumaki did not want to stay lost.


	54. Not so Different

Not So Different

By Silver Dragonfly

...::o::...

“Is killing your own clones assisted suicide, or attempted homicide?” Shanks asked, bemused, as he watched his nephew tend their camp fire.

The teen looked up, his expression dark. “The asshole asked for it! My clones know what happens if they eat my ramen.” He growled.

Shanks chuckled, noting how his nephew began to unwind from his ramen defense inspired outburst as the smell of the noodles now steeping drifted out of the waiting cup. He wondered if any of the teen’s past foes had ever tried to use ramen against him. He even wondered if this particular instance of ramen theft by clones had been somehow initiated by his own teasing comment to the blonde when he had suggested they return to camp.

“Not like it hasn’t happened a million times before.” Naruto muttered.

“You killing yourself, or stealing ramen from yourself?” Shanks asked and then tilted his head to the left to allow the suddenly airborne stone fly past his head.  Perhaps it was time for a subject change. “Or do you mean those marriage arrangements you said you’d tell me about?”

Naruto visibly winced, then seemed to deflate, saying nothing as he checked the status of his waiting ramen.

Shanks waited, and when it became apparent his nephew was not about to speak, continued. “Just what is going on here in your home world, Naruto?” Shanks asked, more gently this time. “Benn and I have both noticed that you are running from something, but we didn’t want to press.”

Naruto remained silent, staring into his cup of noodles as he scooped up his first mouthful.

Shanks pressed on. “Whatever it is, you know it changes nothing with me, my crew, or your place with us.”

Naruto did not answer at first, and Shanks waited patiently as Naruto continued his meal. He slurped the last of his noodles before he answered. “Being seen as a hero wasn’t what I expected it to be.” He finally answered quietly, staring into his empty cup. “For as long as I can remember, I’ve just wanted to be recognized, to not be ignored, to be able to protect what was important to me. We won the war, I lost a lot; everyone did, but…”

Shanks had a feeling he knew where this was going, but said nothing to interrupt.

“I never expected all that recognition to be its own kind of trap. I mean, I knew being Hokage would have some restrictions on it. I knew that even as a kid. Jiji tried to make time for me, but he was always busy. Once Tsunade-baachan became Hokage, I began to recognize a bit of why, but that didn’t stop me wanting to be Hokage. My reasons for why changed, but never the fact that I wanted it. Then came the war and I lost more than I had realized in the name of lasting peace.”

It was at this point that the teen sat back, looking up at the darkening sky. “I’ve been able to accept the loss of that dream,” he said as he turned to look at Shanks, meeting the older man’s gaze steadily. “You’ve helped me with that, a lot.”

Shanks smiled at that, glad he had been able to help with the pain he knew his nephew had been carrying.

“But now everyone wants something from me. At first, I thought it was kind of a joke, there was no way I would ever really abandon Konoha after all, but now… they keep trying to tie me into political promises and use my position for their own benefits.”

Shanks frowned, he did not like the sound of this. He stared into the fire as he considered just what this meant. He was no stranger to politics after all, being a Yonko directly opposed to the World Government was a political position in some ways more than it was one of true power.

He glanced up to see Naruto gaping at him and glared as Naruto suddenly broke into a fit of laughter.

“Your face…” The teen gasped between breaths.

“I do not like the idea of them trying to steal your freedom.” Shanks stated, not seeing the amusement.

“They haven’t.” Naruto said simply after the laughter faded. “It took some time, but Kakashi-sensei, well he’s the Rokudaime now, but he’ll always be Kakashi-sensei…” he trailed off, realizing he had started to ramble. “Well, you know what I mean. Anyways, we’ve managed to push through a request for Sennin status throughout all the villages I’m affiliated with now, and that pretty much guarantees my freedom. As a recognized Sage, I sort of have ‘political immunity’ is how they explained it.”

“Sennin… Sage?” Shanks asked.

“It’s basically a glorified title for a hermit and is what Ero-Sennin was, at least within Konoha. He traveled all over the place. As a Sennin, he could visit other villages without really causing too much diplomatic issue as his loyalties were recognized first to the teachings of the toads and Mount Myouboku and second to Konoha. His status as an established author helped with that too.”

“So because of your affiliation with the toads, you can also claim that title?” Shanks asked.

“Not really because of the toads, though that probably helped. I think my status as Jinchuuriki had a lot to do with it, since it helps balance the power between all the villages. That, and everything that happened in the war with everyone allied together.” Naruto explained.

“You played an important part in that.” Shanks stated.

Naruto shrugged. “I did what I could.”

“Which was quite a bit from what little you and Kurama have said.” Shanks added, amused at the almost embarrassed humility his nephew was now showing.

“Yeah, well I couldn’t not try. What Madara was trying to do would have pretty much turned the entire world into mindless puppets.”

“So you fought for freedom.” Shanks said, grinning.

Naruto smiled at that, “Yeah, I guess I did. Guess I’m not so different from you, after all.”

Shanks laughed, “Not so different at all. So, about that ‘potential brides’ list?” He asked.

Naruto shrugged. “Civilian politics mostly, they try to win favor with the villages. It’s something about how civilian politics work, or so Shika tried to tell me. The Sennin status prevents any of the villages from trying to use me as a political bargaining chip. So I can’t be forced into any marriages for political reasons.”

“They don’t interest you at all?” Shanks asked, curious now. “Or has your heart been taken by that teammate of yours you keep saying isn’t your girl.”

Naruto blanched and then shuddered, yet again very glad that his teammate was not here to hear that statement herself. He really didn’t want to have to heal a smashed up nose… again. “Never say that to Sakura. Ever.”

Shanks just chuckled. “Why does it bother you so?” he asked after a moment.

“Sakura is my teammate. I love her a lot, but… not like that.” Naruto said, his voice more reserved.

“‘Not like that’?” Shanks asked, curious as to just what his relationship with his teammate was. She was the only girl he ever talked about, after all.

Naruto blushed but then shook his head. “I had this huge crush on her in the academy. She was one of the top of the class and so smart. But she only had eyes for our teammate. As we got older, that never changed and I began to realize that while I did really care for her, love her even, it wasn’t in a ‘romantic’ way. She’s the sister I never had…” He paused then, giving a wry smile to his uncle. “She’s Nakama.”

Shanks smiled and nodded, understanding now why Naruto spoke so fondly of her.

“The fact that she can punch me through walls without batting an eye also makes her scary as hell.” Naruto muttered.

Shanks raised an eyebrow at that. “Afraid of a strong woman?”  He asked, teasing.

Naruto shook his head. “No, I admire how strong she has become, but that doesn’t make her any less scary. It’s just…one of the people I lost in the war… she… she sacrificed herself to try and help me in a fight when Konoha was attacked by Nagato back when I was fifteen. I was literally staked to the ground and she got between me and Nagato. She said she loved me and he struck her down right in front of me while I could do nothing. I kind of went berserk when she fell; almost released the fox. Things happened, and everyone except Nagato survived, but I never got a chance to talk to her about it. The war came and everything just spun out of control. She didn’t survive the war and I never got a chance to really see if I loved her back.”

“What was her name?” Shanks asked quietly.

Naruto looked skyward again, a soft, yet sad smile on his face. “Hinata.”

Shanks smiled at the tenderness in the blonde’s voice.

“What about you?” The blonde asked a moment later, smirking at his uncle.

Shanks blinked. “Me?”

“Yeah, you have someone you love?” The teen asked.

Shanks chuckled, “I only have one true love, and that is the Sea. She is a tough mistress, but I always come back to her.”

Naruto started at him in silence for several long moments. “Bull shit.”

Shanks grinned. “It’s true! Any real pirate, let alone sailor, knows it!”

“You love your sake just as much, I think.” Naruto pointed out.

Shanks considered the statement, “Well…”

“Ah!” Naruto suddenly exclaimed. “You’ve got a thing with Hawkeyes!”

Shanks stared, stunned. “What!?!”

“That’s why you weren’t that upset about me leaving you there, right!?” The blonde continued, grinning.

“That’s ridiculous! Do you want me dead?!” Shanks exclaimed, aghast.

Naruto hummed, and considered it. “I suppose Mihawk is pretty uptight; would have thought he’d be a bit more laid back if that was true.”

Shanks relaxed: he got enough teasing from his crew about his supposed relationship with Mihawk; he didn’t need his nephew to join them on it.

“It’s Benn then, isn’t it? You guys have a special Captain-First Mate bond, right?” Naruto asked then, a smirk on his face.

Shanks gaped, stunned by the fact that the statement was coming from his nephew. It was nothing he hadn’t heard before, and was a common implication made between a Captain and their second, but he never expected to hear it from Naruto. His gaze narrowed, “Yasopp put you up to this, didn’t he?”

Naruto grinned again, “So there is a special bond.”

Shanks chuckled. “You might want to avoid saying that around Benn, he tends to take special pleasure in correcting such misconceptions.”

Naruto pouted. “So there’s never been anyone?”

Shanks shrugged lifting his tea cup to take a drink.

“Wait… does this mean you’re a virgin?” Naruto asked.

Shanks spluttered, the remains of his tea sizzling as it hit the campfire.

“Of course not! I’ve had many lovers in ports all over the seas!” Shanks exclaimed, then sighed. “There are risks involved in being that open with someone when you have a price on your head. Even for a passing tryst, it leaves whoever I choose as a partner as a potential target. It’s not a danger I wish to expose others to lightly.”

“Oh…” Naruto said quietly, “I hadn’t thought of it like that.”

Shanks snorted, “Just look at how quickly they put a bounty on your head after learning you were my nephew.”

Naruto nodded, understanding now. “That kind of has to suck.”

Shanks chuckled at the understatement. “It is the life I chose, and I would not change that choice.”

Naruto eyed his uncle carefully. “So there really hasn’t been anyone?”

Shanks returned his nephew’s gaze for a moment and then smiled gently. “One. About ten years ago, in East Blue.”

Naruto grinned. “Name?”

Shanks simply smiled, eyes looking to the sky as his nephew had earlier, “Makino.”


	55. A Hero's History

A Hero’s History

By Silver Dragonfly  
  
…::o::…

“I don’t like it.” Yasopp muttered. “They just decide to drop by now, when the Captain isn’t here?”

Benn didn’t reply but kept his own gazed locked on the ship that was approaching them. There was no mistaking it for anything other than the ship of Monkey D. Dragon.

“Why would the revolutionaries suddenly seek out a Yonko?” Yasopp muttered, though it was obvious he wasn’t actually expecting an answer.

Lucky Roo approached the two from the galley. “What’s the plan, Benn?” He asked, his usual snack absent for the moment.

“Let them come along side. “ Benn said finally, “Full alert, but nothing aggressive. We will see what message Dragon carries for the Captain and proceed from there.”

His words led to a flurry activity as those who had been waiting for a command scurried to work.

.:o:.

Shanks had suspected Naruto was the target of some hero worship from what he had learned of the shinobi war, from both his nephew himself, and his furry tenant. But this… this was unexpected.

They had left Uzushio the previous day, finding that navigating the whirlpools out and away from the island was much easier than navigating them to the island. From there Naruto had led them to a small country he called Wave, explaining he had some old friends who lived there and that they could stay with them for the night before they set out inland to Fire Country and Konohagakure.

The whole family had been thrilled to see Naruto, and when Naruto had introduced Shanks they had stared silently for several moments, inspecting the redhead before finally smiling and stating anyone who called Naruto friend, let alone family, was welcome in their home. They were friendly enough folk, and it was obvious the old grandfather of the family, Tazuna, respected Naruto a great deal despite calling the blonde a short brat. Shanks had politely not corrected the man who was in fact, at this time, shorter than his nephew.  The old man’s grandson, however, idolized Naruto and was in no way subtle about it, although Naruto seemed unaware of the fact himself.

That night he had heard the story of how just over six years ago Naruto and his genin team had saved their entire country from poverty and a tyrant merchant by the name of Gatou. Shanks had enjoyed hearing it and promised to share it with his crew who would also enjoy a tale from Naruto’s youth. Naruto himself had actually seemed a bit embarrassed by the whole thing.

However, one fact had stood out to Shanks. A fact he didn’t think the family or Naruto had meant for him to take notice of. Naruto’s teacher had been mentioned by name, as had the girl on his team, Sakura. Yet, they never named the last member of Naruto’s team, though the fact that there had been three genin present was mentioned, and that intentional removal of the unknown individual bothered Shanks. There was more to this story than he’d been told. He decided not to bring it up immediately, however, suspecting Naruto would only dodge and try to change the subject.  

Shanks had thought he might ask about it now as they began to travel across the bridge that connected the small country to the larger continent. He had just opened his mouth to voice the question when a plaque displayed proudly midway across the bridge caught his attention. Approaching a bit closer, he began to realize just how important a part Naruto had played in this country, even more now than with the stories of the night before. He turned to his nephew who was also staring at the name plaque anchored on a raised pillar mounted evenly within the stone parapet.

“The Great Naruto Bridge…” Shanks read aloud and eyed his nephew from the corner of his eyes. “You didn’t know about this?”

Naruto blinked, glanced to his uncle and then back at the plaque, “No, I mean, maybe a rumor of it but I never…”

Shanks chuckled.  “You get into these types of situations often?” He asked.

Naruto groaned. “I’m not trying to! I just—“

Shanks patted his nephew on the back and started walking once more. “So why are we walking to Konohagakure instead of using your Hirashin?”

Naruto fidgeted.

Shanks glanced back over his shoulder. “I’ve dragged you all over the New World at this point, it’s not like I’m going to be bothered by a bit of foot travel… I just prefer to be at sea.”

“I thought… well you might like to see more of the land I grew up in.” Naruto said quietly after a few moments.

Shanks paused, letting Naruto come up beside him, and smiled as the teen stopped at his side. “I would be honored.”

Naruto grinned. “Great! There’s a great hot spring resort along the way. This time I won't have to worry about being kicked out because of Ero-sennin or Baachan.”

Shanks snickered, “Sounds like fun.”

Naruto’s smile soften, “Yeah, those were good times.”

.:o:.

It was while the pair was chest deep in hot water with sake floating on a tray between them at the promised hot spring resort that Shanks decided it was time to bring up his earlier concerns. “Naruto… who was the third genin of your team when you were on that mission in Wave?”

Naruto froze, his eyes going wide for a long moment before he relaxed, poured himself a cup of sake, and quickly downed it.

Shanks watched silently, waiting.

“Uchiha Sasuke,” Naruto said quietly.

Shanks considered this for a moment, “Why would no one say his name? Why have you never spoken of him?” Shanks asked gently. He almost hoped to hear that the now named individual was dead, but somehow he knew there was more to it.

Naruto took another drink and let out a loud sigh, resting back further and raising his gaze up toward the twilight sky. “Sasuke is… well Sasuke. And nothing with Sasuke has ever been simple.”

“He’s important to you.” Shanks stated, easily reading how even the discussion so far was affecting his nephew.

“Sasuke was my rival, my best friend… my brother in every way that mattered, right up to when he abandoned the village and his team in a quest for power and revenge. He nearly killed me then, and we fought each other many times after that. He was with the enemy at the start of the Fourth Shinobi War and he made a lot of enemies.”

Shanks frowned, that explained why Tazuna’s family had not mentioned the boy.

“But he was still Sasuke and I had sworn a promise to Sakura that I’d bring him home.” Naruto said his voice taking on a distant timbre. “The war got a bit out of control and things happened, but in the end I kept my promise… I brought him home.”

“And now?” Shanks asked his actions casual as he poured both himself and Naruto another cup, but he was very aware of Naruto’s aura and mood as he spoke.

Naruto shrugged and accepted the offered cup. “He’s on some kind of probation and lives in a small compound outside of the village. Mostly keeps to himself. A bit hermit-like I guess. I haven’t gone to see him since I started traveling to your world. Family is a touchy subject with him.”

“You don’t think he’d take it well that you found lost family?” Shanks asked.

Naruto snorted, “His beloved older brother massacred his entire clan when we were seven. He later killed his brother only to find out afterward that Itachi was blackmailed into it because the clan was planning a coup. That’s why he was fighting with the enemy when the war started.”

Shanks hummed and then shrugged, he supposed that was a good enough reason to not be fond of family.

Naruto sighed again, “I suppose I should introduce you while we are there.”

Shanks eyed his nephew, and then flicked a fistful of water into the teen’s face, chuckling as the blonde spluttered.

“What was that for?!” Naruto growled, glaring at the older man.

Shanks grinned. “You were getting much too mopey! We are at a resort, it’s time to relax, have fun, party!”

Naruto glared, but then settled back into the water again. “No parties. I’ve seen you party. I don’t want to get thrown out… again.”

Low chuckles followed by the sounds of splashing and the beginnings of a full-out water fight began to fill the air.

.:o:.

“I still can’t believe it.” Naruto said as they walked along the well-traveled road. “I got banned…”

Shanks reached over to sling his good arm over his nephew’s shoulders. “Oh it’s not all that bad, and I have to say summoning the toads to join the fight was genius. We’ll have to use that against the crew some time.”

Naruto rolled his eyes, but grinned. “That was pretty good.”

Shanks chuckled, “We could pay a visit to Kazanonsen on Seacon Island; the crew hasn’t been there in a while.”

It was at that moment that they cleared a bend in the road and the tall wooden gates of Konohagakure appeared before them, standing open to welcome travelers.

Naruto stood straighter and stopped moving, a grin on his face. “Welcome to Konohagakure, Shanks-ojisan.”

Shanks stood up straight and studied the gates. This is where his sister had gone when she had left all those years ago. This was where Naruto had grown up. He considered this as his gaze swept across the open gates to the arch above them, noting the leaf like symbol that held pride of place at the crest of the arch. He turned to face Naruto once more, “Shall we go in then?”

Naruto nodded and stepped forward. “We can go to Ichiraku!”

“Don’t you need to ‘check in’ first, Naruto-kun?” A new voice spoke up as they stepped inside the gates. “Not that you followed procedure and ‘checked out’ in the first place.”

“He’s got Sennin status now, Izumo.” Another voice spoke up. “He can come and go as he likes.”

The man identified as Izumo pouted, “But he’s hard enough to keep track of as is with that Hiraishin jutsu, Kotetsu!”

Naruto grinned as he approached the two men sitting behind a table just inside the guard booth. “Izumo-san, Kotetsu-san, this is Uzumaki Shanks, my uncle. I’ve brought him to visit the village.”

Both men leaned forward with grins. “Oh, so the rumors are true about you finding a lost Uzumaki.”

Shanks smiled at the two men. “Ah, nice to meet you, I’m looking forward to seeing the village Naruto and my late sister called home.”

“Ah, then Ichiraku’s is definitely a must stop. It’s not only Naruto’s favorite, but was a favorite of his parents as well.”

“So it is a family thing, then.” Shanks said, amused.

“And time to introduce you to the tradition!” Naruto called out and grabbed his uncle’s arm to drag him into the village. “Come on!”

Shanks managed to keep from stumbling, but just barely as the two gate guards laughed.

They had moved off the main street and were entering what looked like a market district when they were stopped once more.

“NARUTO!” A voice almost snarled as a sudden blur tackled the teen. “You can’t leave me alone with her again!”

Shanks blinked.

“She’s nearly killed me a dozen times and your so-called village leader just laughs!”

Shanks gaped at the raven-haired man who had flattened Naruto to the ground. There was no mistaking this young man for anyone else, and yet… “You’re supposed to be dead.” He finally said quietly, still too shocked to truly react further.

Brown eyes turned and met the shocked gaze of the elder Uzumaki, and then blinked. “Well, shit.”


	56. It Only Takes A Spark

**It Only Takes a Spark**

By Silver Dragonfly  
  
…::o::…

The raven-haired young man leaned down closer to Naruto before whispering, loudly, “You didn’t tell me you were brining Red Hair.”

Naruto laughed nervously and then poked the man pining him down on the road in the ribs. “You didn’t give me a chance before you decided to tackle me.”

The raven-haired one turned away from the older Uzumaki to look down at the blonde one he did, in fact, have pinned. “Yeah, well, you keep disappearing before I get a chance to talk to you. I sense you in the village and then poof you’re gone again.”

Shanks frowned as he listened and watched the byplay, then spoke again. “You are supposed to be dead.”

The raven-haired man turned to face him again, “You said that already.”

Before further word could be said by any party, a new voice entered the conversation.

“PORTGAS!  You put out that fire before I use you to put it out!” An enraged female voice demanded, the owner of the voice landing on the street with a tremor spreading through the ground, evidence of her temper.

Ace flinched and quickly reversed his position with Naruto, using the blonde as a shield to hide from the enraged pink-haired shinobi.

Sakura blinked. “Naruto, you are back.” She said, the rage suddenly gone. She then glanced to the side to see Shanks, and studied him for a moment, “You must be Naruto’s uncle.” She then turned back to the still hiding figure behind Naruto. “Portgas I meant it!” She then hissed and reached around Naruto to yank the raven-haired man out from behind the blonde. She then paused, turning back to the older red head and bowed, pulling Ace over with her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, sorry I can’t stay to visit, but there is a fire that must be dealt with at the moment.” With that said, she started dragging the raven haired man back up the street, ignoring his protests and struggles to break free. “I will not have another entire training field destroyed because you are a lazy idiot.” She continued her tirade at her captive as the two vanished from site.

Shanks blinked suddenly once they were out of sight, still stunned, then turned back to Naruto. “He’s supposed to be dead!” He then exclaimed.

Naruto laughed nervously again, “Yeah, that might not have entirely been true…”

Shanks’ gaze narrowed and he reached out to clasp a hand on Naruto’s shoulder turning the teen to face him fully. “You will have to explain it in more detail than that.”

Naruto slumped, but nodded, before perking up a bit more. “Over ramen?”

Shanks stilled and then found himself chuckling despite the shock. “And sake.”

Naruto grinned, “Ramen and sake, got it.”

The two began walking down the street as they had before, when Shanks paused suddenly. “That was Sakura?”

Naruto turned back to his uncle and then nodded slowly, not sure how his uncle was going to react at the moment.

“I see.” Shanks then answered without further comment.

Naruto let out the breath he hadn’t even realized he had been holding.

“She isn’t going to kill him?” Shanks then asked, looking at his nephew from the corner of his eye.

Naruto shrugged, “He might wish she would, but no. She won’t cause any more damage than she can easily heal.”  Naruto considered, “Though if he set fire to the hospital… again… she might let him suffer a bit.”

Shanks hummed in thought. “Are you sure your friends aren’t actually pirates?”

Naruto blinked, “Of course I’m sure; we’re shinobi! Why?”

Shanks chuckled, thinking of some of the female pirates, and even a few marines he had met over the years. “No reason.”

.:o:.

Ace sighed as he spotted the building fire; refusing to look back over his shoulder at Sakura who he was certain was still glaring at him.

“I don’t know what you were thinking.” She muttered.

Ace frowned. He had been waiting for Naruto to return for what felt like forever, and after missing him the last time, he hadn’t wanted to risk another miss. The instant he had identified the blonde’s unique haki signature, he had gone.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” Sakura demanded. “The sooner you get this fixed, the sooner you can go find Naruto and his uncle again.”

Ace glanced back at her surprised.

Sakura met his gaze evenly, “The fire?” She reminded him.

Ace turned back to the growing inferno and then walked into it. The fire swarmed around him, welcoming like an old friend. This was how fire had felt to him since the day he ate the Mera Mera no Mi. The first time he had stepped into a blaze after eating the fruit, he had become part of the fire and relished in its power and freedom. It was only afterwards that he realized the damage the fire had done while he was melded with it, an entire forest area reduced to ash. He had been shocked, and so very grateful that the island had been completely wild with no settlements. Control had become a priority at that point, and it had become a priority again now. He wasn’t one with the fire anymore. It was still in him, part of him, but different, something had changed between the time he took a magma fist through his chest and when he had woken up in this world.

Fire had always felt like a part of him as a Logia of Fire. Any fire he chose to touch, became an extension of himself, and once he had touched it, remained so until extinguished or Ace chose to release it. Now though, the fire was its own personality. It spoke to him: told him what it found, told him what it wanted, called him to it. In turn, fire came to him; even when he didn’t call it, even when he was asleep.

This was why Sakura was so irritated with him. He had burned down an apartment complex in his sleep as well as a few training grounds when he decided to take a nap. The only place he could sleep without causing something to burn down was the hospital room he had woken up in; the room that had been sealed by Naruto to allow the medical staff to treat him. 

Ace focused on the fire he now stood in, and began to call it back to himself.  Returned the very spark of its heart back to the core of himself where he had called it from earlier that same day. He opened his eyes slowly, taking in the charred and slightly smoking area, and grimaced. No wonder Sakura had been upset.

“Well at least you are getting better at that.” Sakura said lightly, the underlying tension that had been in her voice before now fading.

Ace sighed, and then winced when she punched him in the shoulder. He knew it was coming, but she was right, he had been stupid.

“We should be able to find Naruto at Ichiraku’s.” She said, turning to head back toward the village.

Ace froze in place with his head bowed; staring at the ground. He needed to see Naruto and talk to him, but he had not been expecting to see someone from his own past… here in Konoha. He was dead to those who he had sailed with, to all who lived in that world, and he wasn’t sure he had the right to go back.

Sakura turned back when she didn’t hear him follow her, then paused noting the tension in him. “Will you go back with them?” She asked softly.

Ace looked up to meet her emerald gaze, and then smirked. “Anxious to get rid of me?” He asked, a mocking laugh in his tone.

Sakura rolled her eyes. “Don’t be an idiot. Naruto told you, we won’t force you to go back, but we won’t keep you trapped here, either.”

Ace looked down, but stepped forward to follow her when she began walking once more.  “I don’t know.” He finally said to answer her question, knowing she deserved at least that much. “I… I haven’t decided.”

Sakura nodded, expecting as much. “Well you don’t have to decide today. Come on.”

Ace smiled unsteadily but kept up as she picked up the pace.

.:o:.

Shanks let out a contented sigh as he finished off his second bowl of ramen. Naruto was right about this stuff being good. He could do without the instant stuff his nephew seemed fond of on the road and the ship, but the real thing he could definitely grow to appreciate. He glanced at the still growing stack of bowls next to his nephew and shook his head in amusement before reaching to pour himself a cup of sake. His mind drifted back to the raven-haired young man who had pounced on Naruto, not more than an hour ago.

Portgas D. Ace.

Roger’s son, was alive.

He took a moment to let the truth of that fact settle. In the end the ‘how’ didn’t really matter, he supposed; only that Ace was, in fact, alive. But why had Naruto hidden that fact? He knew they both still had their secrets: everyone did and he didn’t think he’d ever tell Naruto everything, nor did he expect Naruto to ever tell him every little thing either, but this… he didn’t really understand why Naruto would keep this hidden.

“Thanks, Teuchi-san! It was great.” Naruto’s voice spoke, interrupting Shanks thoughts.

Naruto glanced to his uncle, the smile fading. Taking a deep breath, he plunged into the story. “Ace was clinically dead when I brought him to the hospital here, that’s what Sakura told me afterwards. At the time I arrived, he wasn’t breathing and he had no heartbeat. The only thing that had me believing there was even a chance was that Kurama and I could sense the faintest flicker of his devil fruit. We did everything we could to keep that tiny flicker from fading as he was immediately put into surgery.”

Shanks remained silent, but tense, he would let Naruto tell it as needed.

“It was a very long process. I fell into a trance near the beginning of it and didn’t come out of it until one of the nurses roused me. I came to awareness to see Shizune and Sakura ordering a new surgery room and moving Baa-chan to a stretcher. Others were preparing to move Ace to a recovery room: he was alive but unconscious. We almost lost Tsunade then, she helped with Ace’s surgery because I asked, and it almost killed her.”

Shanks frowned, he had known something had happened to the older woman Naruto thought of as a grandmother, but he had not suspected it was tied to Naruto’s attempt to save Ace, an attempt that now proved to have been successful.

“She will never be able to heal again.” Naruto said, his voice distant. After a moment he seemed to shake himself and then reached forward to pour himself a cup of sake. He took a moment to drink it, then spoke again. “Sakura explained to me after she had recovered from both surgeries, that Ace was in a coma, and there was no way of knowing if he would ever wake up.  If he did wake up, there was no way of knowing what state he would be in, if he would even know who he was or anything. I… I decided to keep his survival secret. I thought it was better to not get your hopes up, since there was no way of knowing if Ace would ever be able to go back, or want to. I know why he was being executed… and well, there may have been some side effects of my involvement in his healing. I saw some of what had to be his memories, and I wouldn’t blame him if he never wanted to go back. Here he could have a chance to start out fresh…” He paused there, turning to face Shanks, “So Sakura helped by arranging for a look-a-like body and I brought that back to you and the Whitebeard Pirates.”

Shanks sighed then: he didn’t like it, but he understood the reasoning. “Regardless of how, I’m glad he is alive.”

“Ace woke up about a month ago, and has been working on recovering his strength ever since.”

“Which all too often has included out of control fires,” Sakura said as she came up behind the pair and wrapped her arms around Naruto in a hug. “Welcome home, Naruto.”

Naruto smiled, “Hey, Sakura-chan.”

Shanks smiled, “So this is the infamous Sakura-chan.”

Sakura smiled, “And you must be Uzumaki Shanks-san, I hope Naruto hasn’t been telling too many stories about me.”

Naruto blanched as a fist suddenly found his left ribs.

Shanks chuckled, “Oh nothing bad, just that you are an amazing healer and a very talented shinobi.”

Sakura smiled, “I’m sure there was more to it than that.”

Shanks grinned then, “Well, he failed to mention how charming and beautiful you are.”

Sakura blushed brightly.

“Oi, Red Hair, you have a death wish?” A familiar voice spoke from behind the three.

Shanks turned, ignoring the impressive growl that came from Sakura’s direction. “Hello, Ace, it’s been awhile.”

Ace smiled, remembering the party when he had visited the Red Hair pirates while still a captain of his own crew. “Yeah, it has…” but then his expression turned more serious. “You saw Luffy.”

Shanks met the brown eyes steadily, “I did, though he was not conscious at the time. I would have liked to spend more time with him, but the situation did not allow it. Last I heard he was training with Rayleigh.”

Ace blinked at that, eyes going wide, “Dark King Rayleigh is training Luffy?” Then his eyes narrowed.

Shanks chuckled and scratched the back of his head, a motion very similar to one Naruto used often. “I may have had something to do with it. I told Rayleigh about Luffy ten years ago when I first returned to the Grand Line after giving him my hat. Seems Luffy met Rayleigh in Shabody before his crew got separated and made an impression of his own; heard he even punched a World Noble.”

Ace’s eyes widened further at that. It explained, at least in part, why Luffy had been without his crew at Marineford. Marineford… and the war. He had read the papers. The ones not controlled by the government had made a big deal about the Red Hair Pirates showing up and putting a stop to the fighting, and how Red Hair himself had requested they be allowed to take their dead in peace. Ace bowed formally, “Thank you. Thank you for helping my family.”

Shanks expression softened. “No thanks are necessary. We may have been rivals on the sea, but I bore no ill will with Whitebeard. It was the right thing to do.”

“Will you two be making an order, Sakura-san, Ace-san?” Teuchi asked after the moment seemed to pass.

“One Miso please,” Sakura said brightly, taking a seat at the bar beside Naruto.

Ace hesitated before taking the open seat on Shanks right.  “I’ll take a Pork Ramen, thanks.”

Shanks, “Ah, Teuchi-san, another bottle of sake and a third cup, please.”

Sakura frowned, “Ace shouldn’t be drinking.”

Shanks paused in mid motion, his face twisted in surprise. “Are you still that unwell?” He asked turning to look at Ace.

Ace fidgeted, “Not exactly. It’s got more to do with my devil fruit…”

Naruto frowned, “Still flaring out of control?”

Ace nodded, a bit embarrassed. He had been in full control of his powers when he had last seen Shanks, and was a bit uneasy about admitting the weakness in front of the Yonko now. “It’s like learning it all over again. Nothing works quite the way I expect or remember it.”

Shanks considered this, “This must have to do with the complications Naruto hinted at.”

Ace looked up sharply at that, and Naruto laughed nervously.

Shanks considered, “There is something that is bothering me as well: we have heard rumors of the Mera Mera no mi being found, but no one has come out in the open with it.”

Ace stared at that, his eyes going wide. “But I’m not dead.”

“Technically speaking, you were, from a clinical standpoint.” Sakura chimed in.

Ace glared at the pink-haired shinobi. “You don’t get it. The devil fruits are unique, there is only ever one user or fruit of a kind at any one time. The Mera Mera no mi should not have reappeared.”

Sakura glared back. “As I said, you were technically dead, and has anyone with these devil fruit abilities ever crossed into another world before? For all we know that alone was enough to cause it to appear.”

“She makes a valid point, and it is an unconfirmed rumor still.” Shanks added and then leaned back to peer at Ace’s back. “Have you always sparked like that?”

Ace startled and then cursed as he began to focus on putting out the budding embers of fire.

“I’ll take that as a no.” Shanks stated. “So, just what kind of complications are we talking about?”

“The long story kind,” Sakura stated before either of others could respond.  “And it’s about closing time, so maybe this should be continued back at Naruto’s place?”

Naruto grinned, “Sure, I’ve got drinks and cup ramen stocked up there too.”

Sakura sighed, but didn’t comment further, she was well aware that trying to curb Naruto’s ramen tendencies in any form was basically a lost cause. “You three go ahead, I have an early shift tomorrow.”

With that said, the pink-haired shinobi exited the small ramen stand and quickly disappeared from sight leaving the three men to find their own way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for Reading. 
> 
> I wanted to give an apology to all of you who have been anxiously awaiting an update of this story. If you hadn’t seen a post made by me previously about it, I have not abandoned this story! That being said, there have unfortunately been a lot of life events and such that have gone on in the last year that have limited the time and energy I have to put into this story. As it stands, I will not be posting regular updates until the rest of the story is written. So thank you again for all your continued support!   
> P.S. Happy Holidays and special thanks to my betas Blue Melodie and Aria Ino.


	57. Fire's Heart

Fire’s Heart

By Silver Dragonfly  
  
…::o::…

Ace was tense, he couldn’t help it. The appearance of Red-Haired Shanks had put him completely off balance when he had been barely treading water as it was. Until the moment he had recognized Red Hair, he had mostly been able to pretend Marineford was just a bad dream. That he hadn’t basically died in front of Luffy, that his family had not gone to war for him, that his adoptive father had not died. However, the red-haired Yonko being here, now, drove home that the dream had not just been a dream. That he was hiding from his problems, pretending they didn’t exist, that they weren’t real. He hadn’t wanted to think about having to go back, about having to face all of it, of having to find Marco and see what had become of the Whitebeard pirates after the war.

The only hope in all of it, his one regret, was to see Luffy make his own dream come true, and he felt like he didn’t even have the right to that. This was the truth he didn’t want to have to face, and yet, as he followed Naruto and Shanks, the near panic and dread began to fade. Watching the two interact, he realized what he had been ignoring before: Naruto really was kind of like Luffy. Naruto, who he knew deep down, understood Ace’s own fears without even asking, who had been there when he had first woken up from the nightmare…

.:o:.

The first sensation he noticed, was warmth. Now, he had always been warm; ever since the day he had eaten the Mera Mera no Mi he had stopped feeling cold altogether. The only time he had ever felt that fade, was when he had been shackled in sea-prism stone, but this was different. He could feel the usual heat of his devil fruit powers coursing through him, but it was subdued, contained even and it was from that containment this warmth emanated.

He blinked slowly, squinting at the sudden light and then blinking again as the room came into focus. White… white ceiling, white walls… Whitebeard.

The war.

Magma.

Luffy!

He bolted upright gasping, his eyes wild and feeling tongues of flame dancing across his skin.

“Oi! Careful, you’ll injure yourself and set the room on fire!”

Wild eyes snapped to his right side where he spotted a blonde haired man reaching out to him to either brace him, or push him back onto the bed.

“Where is Luffy?!” He demanded, heart beating in his ears and thoughts racing.

The blonde man smiled, “Alive. Safe.”

He took a shaky breath and tried to calm himself as his eyes continued to take in his surroundings. He was in some kind infirmary, the blonde beside him the only other person in the room. He refocused he attention on the blonde. “Who…. you were there.”

The blonde nodded and then smiled, offering his hand. “Uzumaki Naruto.”

He glanced down at the hand, frowning, he had heard that name from somewhere, another pirate? He accepted the handshake carefully and found himself answering as he had been taught by Makino years ago. “Portagas D. Ace, nice to meet you.”

The blonde grinned in response in a way that reminded Ace all too much of Luffy before he answered.

“Nice to meet you, Ace.”

Ace glanced around the room once more realizing it was still, no signs of the ever rolling motion of a ship. “Why am I here?”

Naruto snorted. “To heal; isn’t that the usual reason for waking up in a hospital bed?”

Ace blinked. “Ahh… I guess so.” He said relaxing slightly. “You know Luffy?” He asked.

“Only by reputation, really. He was pretty out of it by the time I showed up at Marineford. Shanks-oji loves to tell stories about him though.” The blonde answered.

“Shanks… Red-Hair!?” Ace exclaimed eyes widening once more.

“Ah, he’s my uncle. He arrived just after I had left with you. According to Benn, he made a nice grandstand of it and ended the war.” The blonde explained.

Ace blinked in surprise, even Red-Hair had come to Marineford? “Did Shanks rescue Luffy?” he asked, knowing what he did of their past, it wouldn’t be surprising. Though how Shanks could have known Luffy would be there…

“Nah, another rookie… umm Supernova, yeah that’s it, who was a doctor or something got him out of Marineford I was told.” Naruto answered.

Ace clenched his fist. Luffy was always pulling crazy stunts and making the most unlikely friends, but another Supernova? Not his own crew? “How do you know he is alive, let alone safe?” He demanded. He had been ready to die to save Luffy, should have died on that battlefield. He needed to know he hadn’t failed and given up on it all for nothing.

Naruto turned toward a nearby side table, picking up a stack of newspapers before turning and dropping them in Ace’s lap. “See for yourself.”

Ace scanned through the papers quickly for information about Straw-hat, his eyes blurring in the process as he read of Whitebeard’s death, his own presumed death, and the unknown status of his brother. He quickly flipped to the next paper in the stack and stared at the image of his little brother wrapped in bandages, hat pressed to his chest in what was obviously a moment of respect for the fallen. “Luffy…” he whispered, gripping the edges of the paper tightly as a few wet splotches blossomed onto the paper.

“No one knows where he went after that.” Naruto said quietly. “We’ve heard word that visit to Marineford was a message for his crew. To regroup and meet again in two years; Shanks-oji is pretty sure Rayleigh helped him with that.”

Ace froze. Silvers Rayleigh, The Dark King, … and Luffy.  Gol D. Roger’s First Mate helping his brother who dreams of being Pirate King. It took him a moment to realize the laughter he heard was his own.

Luffy would do it. Ace’s choice to save his brother and his own belief in Luffy’s ability to reach his dream in those final moments wasn’t just a last desperate hope. His brother really was going to do it. He released the paper before he could tear it and clenched the bed sheets at his sides, eyes squeezing tight to try and prevent the tears that wanted to escape.

After several long moments he spoke, “Why… why did you save me?” raising his head once more to see the blonde’s face.

Naruto’s expression turned somber, but there was a spark of something bright in the blue eyes that met Ace’s own gray orbs steadily.

“Because you deserve to live.” Naruto said quietly.

Ace felt himself tense and nearly flinch as emotions boiled inside. “How can you know that!” he snapped.

Naruto’s face split into a huge grin once more, “Because everyone who knows you, everyone you call friend, everyone you call family believes it.”

Ace started, wide eyed. “My father—”

“Isn’t you.” Naruto cut him off, almost sounding angry as he did so.

“Why do you care!?” Ace snarled then, trying to get his own emotions under control. This entire situation and discussion was leaving him too raw, too open.

Naruto met his gaze steadily. “Do I need a reason?”

Ace frowned and turned his gaze away, his focus falling once more on the stack of papers still on his lap. He paused and then shuffled through them once more. “This says I’m dead.”

“To them you are. You’ve been here since I brought you here nearly six months ago.” Naruto said quietly.

“Six months?”

“Some kind of healing sleep.” Naruto said with a shrug. “I don’t really understand the details.”

Ace stared at the papers, there was little mention of what had happened to the rest of the Whitebeard Pirates. “Does my crew know?”

Naruto fidgeted for a few moments. “No. They think you died on that battlefield. We didn’t know if you would ever wake up, so we decided it would be best to not get their hopes up. Not even Shanks-oji knows. I’m the only one who knows you survived that day. I’m sorry.”

Ace stared at the wall ahead of him, eyes glazing over. Portagas D. Ace really was dead. He blinked then as the last statement caught his attention and turned to stare at the blonde again, frowning. “How can you say that if I’m here in a hospital?

Naruto chuckled nervously, “Umm well, you see, you aren’t in the Grand Line anymore.”

Ace blinked. “One of the Blues?”

“Not there, either.”

Ace frowned. “Where exactly are we then?”

“Well to be more accurate, would be to say no one from your world of seas knows that you aren’t dead.”

Ace blinked again. “My world…”

The blonde grinned yet again, “Welcome to the Elemental Nations, specifically Konohagakure of Fire Country. Welcome to my home.”

The raven haired pirate stared. Blinked. Then stared some more. “WHAT!?!?!”

Naruto winced and then groaned as he rubbed his ears. “Do you gotta be so loud?”

Before Ace could respond there was a knock at the door and a voice spoke up, “Is it safe to come in?”

Ace’s head turned quickly to focus on a pink-haired woman standing in the doorway. “I’d really like to do an examination now that Ace-san is awake.”

Naruto grinned. “Ace, meet Haruno Sakura. She helped heal your guts and stuff and has been looking after you while you were in that healing sleep.”

“It’s called a coma, Naruto.” The pink haired woman admonished, rolling her eyes at the blonde before smiling at Ace. “It’s nice to officially meet you, Ace-san.”

Ace eyed her nervously, something about her made him wary. She reminded him of some of the nurses on the crew in that pretty but dangerous way. “Nice to meet you.” He answered after a moment.

.:o:.

Ever since he had first woken up, he had been struggling with not being overcome by grief. The welcome distractions of Naruto, being in a different world, and the changes in his abilities and control over fire had been enough to keep him from tipping over that edge.  But even knowing Naruto did not judge him, understood him in a way no one really had, he still felt on that edge as he followed behind the Uzumaki pair up to the blonde’s apartment.

Naruto opened the door and the two went inside, but Ace found himself stopping just outside, suddenly feeling like he was intruding on something he had no part of.

Naruto turned to look back at him, “Hurry up and come inside, Ace! This is your home now, too.”

And just like that, just like Luffy had managed to ease the bands around his heart all those years ago, Ace relaxed and stepped inside, closing the door behind him.

  
…::o::…

Happy Holidays.

Thank you for Reading and your continued support of this story! Sorry I’m not ready yet to start posting regularly yet, but its still being worked on. The fic will continue to be on a posting hiatus in the meantime.

As always, a special thank you to my beta’s, Blue Melodie and Aria Ino, who have been subtly poking at me to get a move on again. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! 
> 
> Special Thanks to my beta readers (and sounding boards): Blue Melodie, Mira Inazuma & Aria Ino.
> 
> Thanks again!


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